The Twelve Pains of Christmas
by Isis Kaiton
Summary: There are only twelve days until Christmas comes to Konoha. All the shinobi must deal with their own trials before they are ready for the holiday, but can they survive the insanity?
1. Finding a Christmas Tree

A/N: I wanted to do something special for the holidays, so here it is! I want to try and have the whole thing finished by Christmas, so lucky for you I'm going to have to post a few chapters a day until I'm on schedule. For those of you who are reading To Capture the Divine, don't worry, I'm still working on that too.

Disclaimer: I do not own the song The Twelve Pains of Christmas or Naruto

Chapter 1: Finding a Christmas 

_The first thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me  
Is finding a Christmas tree_

"Do you not feel the spirit of youth all around you?" Gai's cheerful voice cut through the cold December air like a knife.

Kakashi winced and pulled his mask farther up onto the bridge of his nose. As if the bitter cold wasn't enough, Gai had dragged them all out of the comfort of their homes and up into the mountains to search for the perfect Christmas tree. It was for the shinobi's Christmas party, he claimed, and didn't Kakashi, Kurenai, and Asuma _want _to bring the joy of youth and Christmas to Konoha? And so, in addition to desperately wishing to avoid another lecture on youthfulness, Kakashi found himself trudging through the thick snow with the others while Gai danced ahead.

"I think the phrase is 'spirit of Christmas', Gai," Asuma called forward.

"Christmas, youth—they both bring joy to the faces of Konoha's shinobi. And what better way to enjoy them than with the perfect Christmas tree brought back by the Mighty Green Beast?" He paused to look back at the other sensei's cool expressions. "With a little help, of course," he added hastily.

"And don't forget it, Gai. You didn't lug us all the way out here on our vacations just to take all the credit." Kurenai reprimanded. But Gai didn't hear. He was already skipping ahead once again, singing merrily to himself.

They had been walking for hours, and by now at least six inches of snow had blanketed the ground. A sea of evergreen trees stretched as far as the eye could see, but it didn't matter—none was good enough for Gai.

Shifting his axe to his other shoulder, Kakashi tried to remember why he had ever agreed to this idea. Why couldn't Gai be satisfied with the fake tree he kept in his basement all year round? Or with one of the trees within the village's walls? No, it had to be the _perfect_ tree. What constituted perfect anyway? Glancing around him, the white-haired shinobi could see plenty of tall, full trees that would serve the purpose of any normal person. But not Gai's. He should never have agreed to this. It was much more comfortable sitting in front of the blazing fire with a nice Icha Icha Paradise book to read by its light. Two weeks of freedom from teaching and missions, it had been so wonderful. His little apartment was so cozy and warm. He sighed. The wind carried Gai's singing back to him— did that man know how irritating he was?

Similar thoughts were crossing through Asuma's mind. Gai's enthusiasm was far from catching, in fact, it was downright annoying! Inhaling his cigarette smoke, he made an effort to relax. As long as he was out here freezing his ass off, he might as well enjoy it, right? He had been impressed with the scenery at first, it was a winter wonderland. But the novelty soon wore off. He could have seen the same view ten miles closer to home. Thoughts of his father, the Third Hokage, flashed through his mind. The old man would have been thrilled with Gai's quest for the perfect tree. He had always been a sucker for fairytale holidays. There was that time Gai had wanted to use genjutsu to make a Santa Claus visible flying across the night sky, and what about when Gai had enlisted his student Rock Lee to help him transport snow from the mountains to Konoha's then completely snowless ground? Yes, the Third had heartily approved of these ideas, notwithstanding the fact that they couldn't be done. Sunlight gleamed off of Kakashi's axe, catching Asuma's eye. He pitied his comrade for having to carry the heavy blade all the way up the mountain. Things would have been so much easier if Gai would just have let him use his special knuckle blades to cut down the tree. Infusing his wind chakra into the blades would have allowed him to cut one down in no time. But no, that was not traditional, Gai had told him. One couldn't possibly wish to cut down the perfect tree without enjoying the time-honored method of swinging a back-breaking axe at its trunk, could one?

Kurenai hugged herself for warmth, the wind was bone chilling. Why hadn't she thought to bring along her jacket? Oh, that's right, she _had_. But then Gai had told her they weren't planning on going too far, a short run from the village is all, he had told her. She should have known better than to believe him, he always got carried away with things like this. The wind whipped by her again and she shivered. But it appeared the icy gusts had no effect on Gai, he was thoroughly warm in that green jumpsuit of his. He had offered one of his spare suits to her, telling her it would keep her warm while also empowering her body with the strength of youth, but she had fiercely declined. Hell would freeze over before she was caught wearing _that_. The suit was a crime against nature!

Contrary to the opinions of his fellow Jonin, Gai found the mid-December hike to be exhilarating, the cold air to be refreshing, and the power of youth to be everywhere. He couldn't understand the others' despondent faces and the way they looked longingly back in the direction of the village every time they crested another cliff. Wasn't it just wonderful to be alive on a day like today? And wasn't this mission—to find the perfect Christmas tree—just noble? Besides, he was looking to the extreme elements to help him best his rival in yet another contest of skill. Kakashi had beaten him in their last bout of rock, paper, scissors, but he hoped—no, he _knew_—he would win a game of chicken at the top of the peak. He glanced back at the white-haired man trudging mournfully through the snow and a sly smile crossed his face. Kakashi didn't stand a chance! Taking a deep breath, he belted out yet another Christmas song at the top of his lungs.

"Could he please just shut up," Kakashi groaned.

"Wouldn't you rather his s-singing than his l-lectures?" Kurenai responded. The muscles around her mouth were freezing, she could barely talk anymore.

"I'd rather listen to nothing," Asuma chimed in. "Silence is golden."

Kakashi snorted. "I really don't think Gai has ever heard that saying."

"Probably not," Asuma agreed. "Kurenai, I can hear your teeth chattering from over here! Maybe you'd better head back."

"N-no," she replied. "I'm a-alright. J-just a little ch-chilly."

Asuma sidestepped towards her and wrapped his arm tightly around her shoulders. He pulled her close to him, trying to share what little warmth he had.

"I thought you two weren't a couple," Kakashi accused.

"We're not!" Both said simultaneously. Kurenai blushed and Asuma looked away, but he didn't remove his arm from about her shoulders. Kakashi laughed quietly at their reactions.

"What? A fellow Jonin can't try to help out his comrade when she's freezing to death on top of some godforsaken mountain? You read into things too much, Kakashi," Asuma retorted.

Suddenly Gai's jubilant shout floated back to them on the wind. "Yeeeeeeeeees!"

"Thank God! He's found it," Kurenai cried.

"Well it's about time," Kakashi muttered under his breath.

The three Jonin broke into a run, spraying snow in the air as they slid to a stop in front of Konoha's Green Beast. He was crying tears of joy and his eyes twinkled with delight. Gai had always been one to overreact. Silently, he pointed over the newcomers' heads at a gigantic evergreen tree.

"Umm, Gai? That thing is huge," Asuma commented. He estimated it was at least ten feet tall, and only a slight bit less in diameter. Its incredibly large and full branches were already naturally decorated with snow and icicles. "It wouldn't fit in my house if I put a hole in the roof!"

"But luckily for us, it is not going in your house, Asuma. It's the perfect size for the great hall the Hokage's building, after all, that's where the party's going to be." Gai's eyes were still shining with happiness.

"You do realize that it's going to take all day to cut it down, don't you?" Kakashi asked, dropping his axe on the ground.

"Y-yeah, and h-how are we s-supposed to get it b-back to the village?" Kurenai stuttered.

"With the power of youth!" Gai reached down to pick up the axe and took a mighty swing at the tree's trunk. He barely made a dent.

"Naturally," Kakashi mumbled.

Taking turns, the four ninja diligently chopped down the tree. Despite the cold air, they were all considerably warmer after completing the task. Gai fairly glowed with pride as the tree crashed to the ground, spraying them all with snow and pine needles. The others weren't as overjoyed, although they did have to admit, it _had_ been pretty fun to get a tree the traditional way. But their faces quickly fell when they remembered that they still had to make the long trek home, and this time they would be loaded down with literally a ton of extra wait.

"So, Gai, how do you expect us to carry this?" Kurenai asked dejectedly as she eyed the tree's size.

"My dear, Kurenai," Gai began. "With the four of us and the power of youth, we will have this tree back to Konoha in no time!" He walked to the trunk and heaved it up onto his shoulder. "We didn't get to face off at chicken, Kakashi, but what do you say to a contest of strength?"

"Not now, Gai. I really—" Kakashi was cut off by Gai's booming voice.

"Excellent! He who falls first under the weight of the tree will be declared the loser." He began to jog in place. "Come on, everyone grab hold and let us begin our journey home!"

The remaining shinobi each lifted a section of the tree, straining their muscles under its weight. Kurenai took the front end, followed by Asuma, Kakashi, and finally Gai in the rear. They took it slowly, choosing to exchange speed for extra strength. Occasionally, they paused to take breaks. Once, as they were all catching their breath under a rocky overhang, they laid the tree down in the snow. Gai was busy regaling them with a tale of his latest 500 lap run around the village while the others were halfheartedly listening. Suddenly, a deafening crack resounded as the snow mound on which the tree was resting collapsed and the great evergreen began rolling down the mountainside. Gai wept tears of horror.

The tree didn't come to a stop until it was nearly at the bottom of the peak, and miraculously the little incident had saved them hours of labor. Gai refused to see the positive side of the situation, he was too busy mourning the few crushed branches and broken twigs. His three companions had their eyes squeezed tightly shut, silently praying that he wouldn't make them climb back up the mountain to find a new tree.

"What a tragedy," Gai cried, "to see such magnificence damaged." Kurenai, Asuma, and Kakashi held their breath. "But this is still the perfect Christmas tree, and we need to get it back to Konoha, damaged or not." His colleagues simultaneously let loose a sigh of relief.

Hoisting it back on their shoulders, the shinobi continued on their way. A little way farther down the path, Gai consented to let Kakashi summon some of his ninja hounds to help them with their burden. Although he wouldn't admit it, even his youthful muscles were tiring out.

By the time they reached the village gates it was dusk. Kotetsu and Izumo were hanging out in the entryway when they arrived, but promptly ceased their chatter to gawk at the huge tree the four Jonin were carrying.

"It's enormous," Kotetsu exclaimed.

"It's perfect," Izumo added.

Kurenai, Asuma, and Kakashi groaned. Did those two _have_ to egg Gai on? His ego was already soaring sky high as the group finally reached its destination. Slowly they made their way to the Hokage's building. They had to open the double doors wide in order to fit their load through. It took all of two hours and many more helping hands to set the tree up in its stand, but when it was, even Gai's three unwilling companions couldn't deny its majesty.

Its top branches reached up to the high vaulted ceiling, but didn't quite brush it. One could hardly see its damaged portions amid the clusters of needles. And, most importantly, there was plenty of room underneath its arching lower branches for all the shinobi's gifts.

Gai had tears in his eyes—again. "Mission accomplished. We found the perfect Christmas tree."

* * *

A/N: Please review! I have a freshly baked gingerbread cookie for everyone who does. =]


	2. Rigging up the Lights

A/N: Alright, second chapter in one night. I'm on a roll! 'Rigging up the lights' was always my favorite part of the song, so hopefully I've done it justice in this chapter. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Let's see, I sing to myself in the shower and I own a Naruto keychain, does that count?

Chapter 2: Rigging up the Lights

_The second thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me  
Rigging up the lights  
And finding a Christmas tree_

Thud. Sakura landed on the ground—_hard_.

"Damn it, Naruto!" She screamed. "Can't you even _pretend_ to be holding the ladder?"

"Sorry, Sakura." Naruto rubbed the back of his head self-consciously. "I was thinking about how nice a steaming hot bowl of Ichiraku ramen would be on a day like this."

"I don't care what you were thinking, Naruto. Can you please just focus so we can get these lights up?" She wasn't going to forgive him so quickly. That had been the third time he'd let her fall off the ladder. Granted, he had caught her both the first and second times, but the new lump on the back of her head overlooked that little detail.

There were only twelve days until Christmas, twelve days in which to adorn every street and building with long strands of the colorful lights. She knew Tsunade had specifically given her the task because she had an eye for decorating, but she suspected that Naruto was her partner only because the Hokage wanted him out of her hair. Lord knows that kid could be annoying! Did Tsunade really have to give him to her to babysit? It just wasn't fair.

Rubbing the tender spot on her head, she ascended the ladder once more after making sure Naruto had an iron grip on the rails. Why wasn't she allowed to use chakra and just climb up the walls? Oh right, it wasn't traditional—or at least that was the explanation the Fifth had given her. In Sakura's opinion, that excuse reeked of Maito Gai and his outdated notions of the perfect holiday season.

Naruto, however, had a more enthusiastic view of the ordeal. Spending entire days alone with Sakura was perfectly alright with him, even if she _was_ a little too liberal with her fist at times. Damn that girl was strong! He didn't bother to count the bruises anymore.

Looking over his shoulder, the blonde surveyed their work so far. Lights twinkled from every roof up and down the street, artistically draped over eaves and windows. It really was shaping up to be a beautiful Christmas. There was still a little bit of snow on the ground from last night's flurries, adding to the village's peaceful and surreal look. It reminded him of a gingerbread house village. The snow was yummy icing, the lights were colorful chocolates, and the people bundled up in winter coats were made of the warm, freshly baked cookie. Perhaps there was ramen somewhere in this candy village. Oh yes, he would like that. He let his fancy carry him away and closed his eyes so he could better visualize the delicious scene. But he should have been paying closer attention to reality, for he didn't notice Sakura reaching just a _little_ too far to the left. The ladder wobbled, she lost her balance, and the ladder, Sakura, and his candy dreams came crashing down on his head.

"Forget it, Naruto! You're impossible!" Sakura cried.

Naruto mumbled something incoherent through a mouthful of her bright pink hair. She rolled off of him and he sat up in a daze. Now he understood Sakura's pain—literally.

"We'll never get the lights up at this rate," she whined. "I'd probably get it done faster by myself."

"Aw, Sakura, don't be like that," Naruto entreated. "I'll hold onto the ladder tighter next time. I promise I won't let you fall!"

"Damn right you won't! Because this time _you're_ going up there." She cut off his forthcoming protest, "and you can count yourself lucky if I hold onto the ladder half as tightly as you did." She cracked her knuckles and raised her fist to give him another clonk on the head.

Naruto took one look at her angry face and scrambled up the ladder as fast as he could. Sakura could be downright scary when she was mad!

Grabbing the staple gun from off the roof ledge, he began stapling the lights at regular intervals. He softly hummed some Christmas tunes to himself as he worked, trying to ignore the fierce aura that was wafting up from below him.

There! That was the last stretch for this building. They were making progress.

"I'm doing a pretty good job, aren't I, Sakura," he called down to her. For him, her praise was rare and valuable, like finding bits of gold in the dirt. He had to be careful too, or else the gold would break under his pressure and the angry Sakura would surface again.

But apparently he wasn't tactful enough. Either that or she still hadn't forgiven him for letting her fall. "Sasuke and I could have done a much better job." She sighed. Sasuke. That boy was so handsome, so strong, and so…untouchable. Why couldn't he think of her the way Naruto did? She would gladly go out with him anytime, anywhere, even if it was just training. But Naruto, on the other hand…yes, she had definitely had her fill of the blonde.

"Why are you so obsessed with Sasuke," he yelled at her. "It's always Sasuke this, Sasuke that." He performed a few mocking motions for emphasis. Unfortunately, he forgot to use one hand to hold on to the roof. Down he fell right to the ground, right on top of his teammate.

"Because Sasuke wouldn't do stupid things like that!" Sakura fumed at him. She couldn't even imagine him losing his balance, let alone falling off a ladder. But not a day went by when Naruto didn't fall over and hurt himself, and probably someone else too. He was such a klutz.

Pushing Naruto off her with unnecessary force, she leapt up onto her feet and began stalking away. Naruto hauled himself up too and began running after her. She couldn't leave now, not when he finally had some alone time with her.

"Wait, Sakura," he called.

She whirled around to face him, her emerald eyes smoldering. "What?"

"You can't go! We have to finish rigging up these stupid lights, the Hokage is counting on us!" It was a lame excuse, he knew that. But she wouldn't want to disappoint the Fifth.

Sakura stopped in her tracks. What he said had struck a chord, the Hokage _was_ counting on them. All the shinobi were busy with holiday tasks, there was nobody else available who could do this job for her. And if she left now, what would Lady Tsunade think of her? Naruto would mess things up beyond repair if she left him alone with the mission, that much was obvious. She had the strength, she had the will. As long as she could keep her temper under control, nothing more would go wrong, right?

Slowly, she turned around and began walking back towards him. An idiotic smile lit up his face, no doubt he thought her change of heart was due to his pleas. She had to straighten things out.

"Listen, Naruto," she began. "I'll finish this _for the Hokage_, not because I like being around you so I can get hurt every ten minutes."

Naruto just nodded, his blue eyes sparkling with glee. Sure, let her say she was only coming back because it was her duty, he knew that deep down inside she was captivated by his charm and finesse. That had to be it. Why else had she return to him so quickly?

"Let's take a break from stringing these up for a minute," she suggested. "Go plug the cord into that outlet in the electric box. Let's see how this side of the street looks so far."

Obediently, Naruto trotted over to the plug and began walking it towards the outlet. Then he stopped. He tugged once. He tugged again. No good. The cord didn't reach the outlet! Man was Sakura going to be pissed. Sheepishly, he strolled back over to where she was waiting expectantly.

"Um, Sakura?"

"Why aren't they on, Naruto? Didn't you find the outlet?"

"Well, yeah, but…"

"But what? Spit it out."

"The cord doesn't reach. It's too short by about eleven feet." He closed his eyes, waiting for the barrage he knew was coming.

"What?! After all that hard work, after all those injuries, the cord doesn't _reach_?!" She could feel the steam coming out of her ears, the snow at her feet was melting into slush. So much for keeping control of her temper. "Do we have an extension cord or something?"

"Er, no," Naruto admitted.

"We have no extension cords?! Not one?" Sakura was upset, very upset. Her scary side was bubbling to the surface, she could feel it. And so could Naruto, he was dancing in place, trying to avoid looking directly into her stormy emerald eyes.

"Well, there might be some in storage," he offered.

She took off like a shot, headed for the storage building where the village kept all its holiday decorations eleven out of twelve months every year. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a streak of orange following close behind. There was no way she was letting all that hard work go to waste! She would find an extension cord if she had to turn the whole village upside down. She would stretch the strand eleven feet until it reached the outlet if she had to. But she refused to take down the long string of lights winding over the entire side of the street just because one lousy plug decided to be uncooperative.

When they reached the warehouse, Sakura and Naruto searched high and low for the much sought after cords. Finally, they found quite a few wedged behind an inflatable Santa and a rack of wrapping paper. In an effort to simultaneously appease and impress the kunoichi, Naruto filled his arms with cords, piling them so high he could barely see over the top. But Sakura paid little attention to him as he staggered down the road beside her, she was too busy keeping an eye on her own precariously stacked knot of cords.

Upon returning to the outlet, the shinobi spent another careful half hour untangling their precious burdens. At last, they had each one straightened out on the ground. Warily, Sakura plugged the strand of lights into one cord, and then plugged the cord into the outlet. There was no way she was going to let Naruto attempt it, not after all that effort.

She clapped her hands with joy when the lights turned on. But then they went out. And back on. And back out again. They were blinking. Her face fell.

"Why the hell are they blinking?!" She vented her rage on an unfortunate stone that happened to be sitting at the side of the road. She turned on Naruto. "Fix this!"

Naruto was cowering away from her. "Okay, okay, but calm down," he pleaded. He had no idea how he was supposed to fix it, but he didn't want to think about what Sakura would do to him if he didn't. Images of the cracked stone the kunoichi had just hit popped up in his mind. No doubt his _face_ would be cracked if she got to him!

Hurriedly, he walked over to the electric box. He had seen older guys playing around in here when something electrical went wrong, right? It was worth a try, anyway. Timidly, he flipped one of the many switches inside. The lights went out completely.

"Naruto," Sakura growled threateningly.

"Sorry, sorry! I can fix that." He flipped it back and the lights returned to blinking. At least that had done something though. He tried a few more switches, all the time keeping one eye on Sakura's whereabouts. Nothing was working! What was he going to do? He started flicking switches faster and faster, trying different combinations until the movement of his hands was a blur. He ignored the shouting coming from people around him, the lights going on and off in the houses across the street, the radio suddenly blasting from a speaker near him.

"Wait, stop!" Sakura suddenly called.

With lightening reflexes, Naruto paused on the verge of trying the next switch. He looked up at the lights, they weren't blinking! Yes! He had done it. "See, Sakura? I told you I could fix it, piece of cake." He slammed the electric box's door shut and walked back over to her.

Sakura just rolled her eyes. She was too relieved to argue with him now. But then her heart skipped a beat, her eye twitched. One of the tiny light bulbs was flickering, and then— pop—it went out. As that first light went out, the others followed one by one down the chain. As power was cut off to the bulb before it, each following bulb went out. Sakura was speechless. She opened her mouth in a silent scream.

Naruto too stood gaping. What had just happened there? "One light goes out, and they _all_ go out," he whispered incredulously.

It wasn't often that the pink-haired kunoichi lost her voice. But when she did, she always found it again quickly. She had already used the rock to vent her anger upon, so now she rounded on the growing crowd bystanders in the street. Her face twisted, she blew steam from her nostrils—and she exploded.

"Well if _you're_ so smart, _you_ rig up the lights!" She bellowed at them. The crowd scattered quickly in the face of her rage.

One silent, dejected trip back to the warehouse later, the two shinobi returned with a bag of fresh bulbs. These they had found after much searching underneath the plastic reindeer and boxes of ornaments. Naruto ascended the ladder cautiously, a precious bulb cradled in the palm of his hand. Gently, he unscrewed the old bulb and replaced it with the new. It went on! And not just that one, but the rest of the string did as well! He clapped his hands in delight. "Sakura! We did—"

But he forgot to hold on to the roof. Again. He fell with a crash on top of the girl below. Again.

But hey, at least the lights were on.

* * *

A/N: Sakura and Naruto were such a pair when they were young! They matured so much over the years Sasuke was away. But anyway, I hope you liked that chapter. Please review!


	3. Hangovers

A/N: This chapter is a little bit shorter than the others, but it's still pretty funny. Drunk Lee always made me laugh. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I'm only a poor writer with six sheets of paper, three pens, and a paperclip. Need I say anything more?

Chapter 3: Hangovers

_The third thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me  
Hangovers  
Rigging up the lights  
And finding a Christmas tree_

Rock Lee lay sprawled on his bed with his eyes closed. The steady rise and fall of his chest was the only thing that indicated he was still alive. He didn't know how long he has been like this—it could have been hours, or even days. The pounding in his head was making it hard to keep track of time.

Last night had been another wild party. How many had he been to now? He'd lost count after the sixth. Lee couldn't figure out why he kept going to these events, but he supposed it was the power of youth that kept him going. It most certainly wasn't his brainpower—those functions generally ceased after his first shot of sake.

Normally, everyone knew better than to let him get drunk. But this was a special occasion, they told him, he was definitely allowed to drink and celebrate the holiday season. And why shouldn't he be allowed to? He was on vacation! Christmas only came around once a year—he should be able to enjoy himself.

Lee groaned. The bright sunlight streaming through the windows penetrated his closed lids and made his headache ten times worse. He debated whether he should get up and close the blinds, but decided against it. His stomach probably wouldn't be able to handle the short trip. He couldn't remember exactly how much he'd drunk last night or even what he had done afterwards. Considering his usual reactions to alcohol, it probably hadn't been anything good. Tenten always regaled him with stories of his antics a few days afterwards, but it he thought she exaggerated just a bit. He couldn't _really_ have done all those crazy things, right?

The first time he had ever tasted sake, he had gone absolutely nuts—or so Tenten said. His whole team had been at the bar, sitting quietly at a little table against the wall. They had just gotten back from an overnight mission and decided to enjoy a meal before they parted ways for the night. Apparently, Lee had "accidentally" had a sip of his sensei's sake. The rest was history. He had begun by using his Leaf Hurricane technique to slice their table in half. Then he had proceeded to dance on the other customers' tables, despite their shouts of protest and the mugs and glasses being thrown at him. He had deftly dodged all the missiles, creating even more havoc as he did. He knocked pictures off the wall, smashed food and cutlery on the floor, and broken nearly every window in the place. It had taken the combined skills of Tenten, Neji, and Gai-sensei to finally restrain him and drag him out of the bar—or what was left of it. The owner had demanded immediate reparations, and Lee's beloved sensei had taken it upon himself to pay the bill. He had only just finished paying Gai back last week.

Then there was his battle with Kimimaro. He had unintentionally taken a shot before challenging the powerful shinobi to a fight, and the ensuing battle was one to remember. His moves were loopy and flexible, one would think he was just a pathetic drunk by looking at him. But that had been Kimimaro's mistake. For some reason, sake always made him feel even lighter on his feet. He was faster, more powerful. He had been able dodge his opponent's attacks with ease and even run circles around the man. Occasionally he would fall flat on his face in a drunken stupor, but even as Kimimaro extended a sharp bone to finish him off, he would jump up and block the blow.

It was truly amazing, the things alcohol did to him. Naruto had once suggested that they give Lee a shot before every battle, then he could be Konoha's Drunken Lotus instead of the village's Green Beast. But Gai and Tsunade had immediately dismissed the idea—an intoxicated Lee was a danger to everyone around him, not just his enemies.

Lee vaguely wondered why sake had that effect on him. He tried to stretch his mind around the question, but it just wasn't cooperating. His brains felt like putty. Every slight movement and thought triggered renewed spasms of pain behind his eyes. Sleep was eluding him, all he could do was lie there on his bed—not thinking, not moving.

Then suddenly, an idea came out of nowhere, prodding his brain and setting of little painful sparks in his skull. Perhaps _more_ alcohol was the answer! If one shot made him feel happy and _then_ crappy, maybe another one would cure him!

He cracked a lid open. The kitchen was an awfully long way away. Could he make it? Hell no. He shifted his gaze to the picture on his nightstand. There he stood next to Gai-sensei, smiling and waving at the camera. Hmm, Gai-sensei, perhaps he could help. He'd always been there for Lee before.

"Sensei, get me some more sake, huh?" The words were barely audible as they rasped out of his dry throat. Gai didn't move. "C'mon, Sensei…" he pleaded. Still, the figure didn't move. "Maybe a glass of water, then?" Nothing. "Aw, man." Lee moaned and shut his eye again. It had been worth the try.

"Feel the power of youth," Gai's enthusiastic voice suddenly called. "Feel the power of youth!"

Lee twitched. Gai-sensei _had _come! His wonderful teacher was coming to help him get over this awful hangover. With Gai-sensei supporting him, anything was possible. He could haul himself out of the bed and go get his own glass of water! But then he paused on the verge of pulling himself up—why wasn't sensei saying anything else? He kept repeating that one phrase over and over in that same cheerful tone. And that was when reality hit Lee like a ton of bricks. Did he remember how Gai had customized a ringtone for his most passionate student on his last birthday? Well now he did.

Letting loose a despondent cry, Lee grabbed a pillow and pulled it over his ears, trying to block out his overly cheerful ringtone. Oh he felt the power of youth alright—the power even a single shot of sake held over his own youthful head.

Finally, Lee was able to sleep. A few hours of peace in which he could leave the pain in his head behind was more enjoyable than any twenty mile run he'd been on with Gai-sensei. When he woke up again, he could honestly say he felt a tiny bit better. At least his brains no longer felt like putty—they had congealed into a jell-o.

But it was time to get up out of this torpor. He couldn't lie down all day and mope around! He should be working off this hangover with a healthy run. Perhaps Neji would like to train with him, or Gai-sensei wanted to have a pushup contest—or not. Maybe that was overdoing it just a bit. He could settle with going to the bathroom, brushing his teeth, and going back to bed. It was enough activity for one day.

Every step he took sent off fireworks in his head, but the feeling of the cool bathroom tile under his feet was worth it. He looked in the mirror, horrified at what he saw. Konoha's Green Beast was a mess. His short black hair was rumpled and had lost some of its shine, there was a telltale pink coloring under each eye, and his lids were very, _very _droopy. His close-fitting green jumpsuit was the only thing that had weathered the storm. He had come to hold great respect for the suit—it could withstand anything. Still, it was a good thing Sakura hadn't seen him like this.

After going through the usual bathroom rituals, which took a little longer than usual due to the extra time he spent on the toilet, he trudged back to his room. On the way, the little pile of mail on his dresser caught his attention. He debated whether or not to look through it. On the positive side, there might be a Christmas card from Sakura, but on the down side, it would involve reading. Deciding that Sakura had the upper hand over his aching brain, he sat down and began to sift through the stack of letters. There were some advertisements, some catalogs, and of course, more holiday party invitations. He firmly resolved not to accept any of the latter, look what they did to him! But then a small pink envelop caught his eye. It was an invitation to the Harunos' Christmas celebration to be held three days from now.

Well, he supposed just _one_ more party wouldn't hurt.

* * *

A/N: Poor Lee, it's too bad alcohol does that to him. Anyway, as the story progresses, I'd be interested in knowing which chapter everyone liked best, so drop me a line. You know how I love my reviews! =)


	4. Sending Christmas Cards

A/N: Ok, here's chapter 4! I can personally relate to this chapter and Shikamaru's stuggles, it happens to me every year too. Personalizing messages is one of the hardest things to do. I'm sure some of you have the same problem. *looks around knowingly* You know who you are! =)

Disclaimer: Same as last time, except I used up all the ink in one of my pens.

Chapter 4: Sending Christmas Cards

_The fourth thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me  
Sending Christmas cards  
Hangovers  
Rigging up the lights  
And finding a Christmas tree_

The only sound in the room was Shikamaru's gentle breathing. Of course, there should also have been the sound of pen scratching across paper, but perhaps that was expecting too much. The boy was sleeping, forehead resting on the kitchen table, arms dangling at his sides. The large stack of new Christmas cards next to him indicated he hadn't even made a dent in his task.

"Shikamaru Nara," his mother exclaimed as she walked through the door. "Are you sleeping again? You know, if you had just begun writing the cards when I gave them to you, you would already be done by now. Shikamaru, are you even listening to me?"

Listlessly lifting his head, Shikamaru nodded once. "Women…" he mumbled under his breath.

Sighing, he opened one of the cards up in front of him and picked up the black ballpoint pen. He stared at all the blank space—who could possibly have so much to say that they needed that much room to write? He sure didn't. In fact, he could never think of anything to write at all—not for birthdays, thank you notes, or any other occasion.

Carefully, he placed the tip of the pen on the paper and scrawled "Merry Christmas" in big letters across the top. Not very original, but he couldn't think of any other message than that. What else was there to say, really? "I hope your holiday is a special as you are" and "enjoy the warmth of our friendship this holiday season" were _way_ too cheesy. Maybe a reference to world peace and love? Definitely not. How about "remember to leave some milk and cookies for Santa"? No way. Who was he writing to, a five year old? This was such a drag.

He rested his chin in the palm of his hand and began to doodle on one of the spare envelopes. As his pen danced across the paper, he tried to imagine what his teammates would be doing right now. Choji would probably be having a midday snack, perhaps a bag of potato chips or a piece of barbecued pork. Of course, Ino wouldn't take part, she always strictly followed the rules of her latest diet. But that never stopped her from tagging along and commenting on her teammate's daily weight gain.

He glanced down at the envelope, it was now covered in swirling lines—a stark contrast to the very blank card that lay open beside it. He shifted his gaze to the large stack next to him. Oh yes, it was going to be a long day.

Shikamaru had never been an arrogant kid, but he knew he was smart. Sure, he didn't always like to show it, but he had an IQ of over 200. So why was a simple task like writing holiday messages so difficult? He could ace a test with his eyes closed, outwit any enemy, and beat anyone at a game of shogi, but Christmas cards were in a whole other league all together. Wait, shogi! There was an idea for a card! He took up his pen again and drew a shogi board on the inside cover. It took up the whole side. Then, across from it he wrote, "Dear Asuma, I hope you're having a good vacation so far—I heard what Gai-sensei put you through the other day. Maybe we can get together and play shogi some time soon. Merry Christmas! Shikamaru and family." It was perfect for his teacher, and as an added bonus, all the space on the card was completely filled. Was that all there was to it? He just had to draw a huge picture and write a little personal message?

He sealed Asuma's card in an envelope, addressed it, and placed on top of the small pile of finished cards. Then he reached over and pulled the next blank one towards him. Hmm, who else would be easy to write to? The Akimichis, of course. He outlined a giant bag of potato chips and wrote a short message beside it. "Dear Choji and family, I hope you're enjoying the holiday. We'll all get together soon and go out for barbecue. Merry Christmas! The Naras."

Great! That was one more down—only about a hundred more to go. He quickly scanned the list of names his mother had written out for him. Did he really have to send cards to them all? He didn't even _know_ half these people!

Suddenly Shikamaru heard the front door slide open and felt a cold draft blow into the house. "Hey, Shika," his father called. "How's it going?" Shikato Nara carefully wiped the slush from his shoes before removing them and walking into the kitchen.

"Ugh," the boy groaned. "Dad, this is such a drag."

His father eyed the small stack of completed cards. "Hmm, yes I can see that. You've made quite a lot of progress there, haven't you?" He added sarcastically. The tiny number had only grown by two since he had left the house that morning.

"Dad, look at these names. Who _are_ some of these people? The Moriokas, the Sasakis, the Naritas…? Have you even heard of them?"

"Well, your mother has a lot of friends, son," Shikato replied uncertainly, for in truth, he _didn't_ know any of those names.

"Women…" Shikamaru complained.

"You said it," his father agreed.

The boy watched the older man leave—great, even his dad had abandoned him to this hopeless undertaking. Slowly he reached forward for the next card. He started with the Yamanakas, moved on to the Inuzukas, and then wrote out Naruto's. At least he'd been able to think of something for those first five—Choji and Ino were on his team, while Kiba and Naruto had been his friends at the academy—but he really didn't know the rest of the rookies that well. Sakura had always been drooling over the Uchiha, Neji, Tenten, and Lee had graduated a year before him, and Shino, Hinata, and Sasuke had always blended into the shadows, he couldn't remember if he'd ever even spoken to them!

Grumbling to himself, Shikamaru picked up his small stack of addressed envelopes and headed for the door. He'd go drop these off at the post office, maybe a short walk would give him some ideas. Sliding into his shoes and grabbing his jacket off its hook, the boy walked out the door and started strolling up the street at a leisurely pace. There was no need to rush this, right? He didn't want to have to go back inside to his task—no, his torture—too soon.

He kicked up slush with his shoes as he walked. All the snow had nearly melted, but there was still hope of a white Christmas, he'd heard that another storm was blowing in from the north. But even without the tiny white flakes blanketing every surface, the village still looked ready for the festivities. Long strands of colorful lights bedecked every house along the street—courtesy of Naruto and Sakura. Faintly, he heard a distant crash and a shout, apparently the duo hadn't finished yet.

Although he tried to drag it out, Shikamaru's lazy pace eventually brought him to the post office—there were only so many detours he could take. He dawdled around inside for a bit, taking an inordinate amount of time to choose stamps, and then watched the postman drop the letters into the sorting bag. Unfortunately, there were no more excuses for him to be there, so he trudged back out the door and into the bitter cold. It was a shame he couldn't just walk about the village dropping each letter in its respective mailbox, that would have taken so much more time. But no, Gai's influence over the Hokage during Christmastime extended even to sending out cards. Using a shinobi's speed to deliver them wasn't _traditional_. In Gai's opinion, the surprise at receiving an unexpected card was half the fun in sending them! Running around delivering cards as soon as one finished writing them tarnished the whole experience. Yeah, right.

Before he knew it, his feet had brought him back to his kitchen. He stood there for several minutes staring at the cards, willing them to write themselves. His attempt was fruitless. "What a drag," he mumbled before returning to his seat.

Let's see, what was another name on his mother's list? Oh yes, Neji Hyuuga. He'd heard that Team Gai had recently returned from a fairly dangerous escort mission. Perhaps he could write, "I'm glad your destiny wasn't to die or get wounded on your last mission." Or maybe not. That probably wouldn't be the proper message to send to a fate-obsessed, extremely talented Hyuuga—too risky.

Shikamaru sighed. Maybe his mom would have an idea, after all, most of these people were _her_ friends. "Hey, Mom," He called down the hall.

His mother stuck her head out one of the doors. There were pieces of wrapping paper in her hair and she held some scissors in her hand. "Did you call me, Shika?"

"Yeah. Listen Mom, what do you want me to write to all these people?"

"Honey, you're _still_ working on those cards?" She frowned.

"Yeah, it's such a drag."

"You are so lazy, Shikamaru. I don't know what I'm going to do with you." She ran her hand through her hair in exasperation, knocking loose some of the paper slivers.

"But Mom, most of them are for _your_ friends. I wouldn't know what to say to them if I sat here all night!"

"Go ask your father, Shika, I'm a little busy right now." She pulled her head back into the room. That boy needed to learn the value of hard work. At the moment, she was up to her neck in a sea of bright red wrapping paper and tape as she tried to package all of the family's presents, she couldn't handle sending Christmas cards too. "Men…" she grumbled to herself.

Shikamaru turned back to stare at the blank card before him. He already knew his father wouldn't help, he tried that earlier this morning. Besides, knowing his dad, Shikato would have made himself scarce by now so his wife couldn't pull him into yet another holiday job.

This was getting ridiculous. How would it be so hard? He set the pen down, leaned back in his chair, and put his hands together in his favorite thinking position. The minutes went by slowly, the loud ticking of the kitchen clock reverberated throughout the house. Finally, he sat back up. Picking up his pen he opened each of the blank Christmas cards and wrote:

**We hope you enjoy the holidays, heaven only knows how much work each one of us has put in to make them perfect.**

**Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!**

**The Naras**

* * *

A/N: I think his messages sums up what has to say quite nicely. And as you'll see, there's still a lot more for our favorite ninja to go through. Please review, I'd really appreciate it. Reading them makes writing this whole story worthwhile.


	5. Five Months of Bills

A/N: Okay, with this chapter done I'm finally on schedule! I should have the entire story up by Christmas Eve, including a bonus chapter about the shinobi Christmas party that everyone's been preparing so hard for. Read and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I just used up all my creativity so... I don't own the song The Twelve Pains of Christmas or the characters in Naruto.

Chapter 5: Five Months of Bills

_The fifth thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me  
Five months of bills!  
Sending Christmas cards  
Hangovers  
Rigging up the lights  
And finding a Christmas tree_

Tsunade glowered at the two tall stacks of paper before her. They always looked bigger than usual around this time of year. The first heap contained lists upon lists of things she needed to buy for various holiday parties, presents she still had to get for family and friends, and of course, reminders to keep up the usual necessities for the village. The second pile was entirely made up of bills. Receipts for recently purchased gifts, invoices of party food she'd ordered, mission expenses, tabs on her own personal debts—they were all here.

When Shizune had walked in with the regular heap of paperwork in her arms, the Fifth had dismissed it as just the usual bunch of mission reports and other forms. But then she had lazily glanced over the top paper—big mistake. The first bill alone was for $300. She had been outraged. Who could possibly have racked up such a large sum? But then her assistant had gently reminded her how she had gone all out on ordering the drinks for the party this year. Tsunade blushed. What could she say? It was important to have the very best sake during their festivities!

After that first encounter, she hadn't dared touch anymore bills. What if some of them were for even _more_ money? She shuddered at the thought. It would take months to pay all of them off! Missions were scarce enough as it was. She picked a thick folder up off the floor and dropped it in her lap. She opened it and absentmindedly started flicking through the many pages of mission requests inside. Let's see, who could she rip off? Ah, the daimyo was asking for an escort to Sunagakure, that eternally warm village where the cold and snow never penetrated—lucky bastard. Maybe he wouldn't notice if she tacked on an extra one or two hundred dollars.

She swiveled around in her chair and gazed out the window at the cozy village below. Everything looked so perfect, nothing could possibly amiss, right? Wrong. When one dug a just a _little_ deeper one would see the inescapable stacks and stacks of bills that Christmas always brought. They were all over! Her own personal pile was so big she could have used it as one of the beams to support her house. They were killing her, sucking her dry, taking all of her precious money, suffocating the village, and—she stopped fueling her own anger just in time to prevent herself from getting up out of her chair and hurling it out the window yet again. Every time she did that Kotetsu and Izumo had to lug it all the way back up to her office, the entire time watching her warily. Besides, having to hire repairmen was _not_ a good idea right now.

Maybe she should look over some of the past mission dossiers to take her mind off of money matters. Which one should she start with? Her entire desk was cluttered with papers, folders, and sticky notes. How did Shizune ever find anything in this mess? She randomly chose a small packet and began to read. She caught her focus drifting and her head nodding about once every ten minutes, but she stuck it out. When she finally finished, she was overwhelmed with a sense of triumph—she couldn't remember the last time she'd completely read through a report. How old was this one anyway? Oh, it was from last month. She smiled sheepishly. So maybe she _was_ a little behind on her work. But still, that was only to be expected! She was the Hokage after all, it was a many faceted job. She hardly ever had time for the paperwork. Memories of the countless work hours she'd spent doing her nails and sneakily drinking sake behind Shizune's back flashed through her mind, but she quickly pushed them away. Now, now, there was no reason to bring _those_ up.

But there were only so many hours one could spend reading reports and signing papers, and eventually she had to turn her attention back to the two mounds of paper before her. She sighed. They hadn't magically disappeared as she'd hoped. Miracles of Christmas her ass. Perhaps if she stuffed them in the closet…?

Just then, her assistant barged through the door and walked briskly over to her desk. As usual, her arms held paperwork up to her eyes. The Hokage swiftly looked away. Should she fake an illness? Or hide under the desk?

"Lady Tsunade," Shizune struggled to talk over the stack of documents. "I brought you this week's mission files to look over." She dropped half the pile on the desk. "And also some forms to sign." She held the other half expectantly in front of the Fifth's face.

"Er, actually, Shizune," Tsunade began lamely, "I was already working on something…." She let her sentence trail off—even she didn't even know what she was trying to say.

"Hmm, really?" The brunette sounded skeptical. Tsunade doing work without prodding? Unbelievable. But then again, she could actually _see_ the desk, so maybe her boss was telling the truth. Normally there was so much clutter that one couldn't even make out the floor, let alone the desk.

"Yes," the Hokage replied firmly. "I've already looked over these," she handed Shizune several thin packets. "And signed these," she offered her assistant a small folder.

"You _have_ been busy," Shizune said sarcastically. But she did have to give the Fifth credit, she usually wouldn't have done that much work on her own in a week. There was no telling how long this industrious streak would last, perhaps she should leave so as not to risk ruining it. "Well, I won't interrupt you any further. Is there anything I can get you before I go?"

Yes, Tsunade felt like saying, a couple of lottery tickets would be nice. But she bit her tongue—no doubt several of those bills were gambling tabs she'd racked up. And at this point, she didn't even think winning the lottery would be enough to pay everything off. She shook her head. "No, I'm alright."

She followed Shizune out the door with her eyes—she'd give a lot to be getting out of the office too.

Signing, the blonde looked down at the new forms her assistant had brought in. She only bothered to glance over each one quickly before signing her name with a flourish. Her signature was large and curvy, taking up most of the space available. She wondered if it would look nicer if it was smaller and tidier. Taking a few more papers off the stack, she practiced signing her name in various ways. There was the large and loopy, neat and compact, and of course, the classic illegible scribble. But she could only spend so much time practicing her signature—eventually even her creative mind ran out of different approaches.

Against her will, her thoughts wandered back to the pile of bills in front of her. Maybe she should start looking them over, just so she could have an idea of how badly in debt the village was. No, there was no need to start _now_, they would still be there in ten minutes. She'd wait just a little bit longer before submitting to the torturous documents.

She could look at some more mission requests—now there was an idea! But then her face fell, who did she have available to go on missions? Most of Konoha's shinobi were already on one, even the genin were busy! Opening one of her desk's drawers, she pulled out the stack of cards she used to assign missions. Each card had a ninja's face pictured on it and depending whether their face was in the stack or not, Tsunade knew if they were available for a mission. She looked down at the meager handful of cards she held now: Maito Gai, Rock Lee, and several of the rookies. Naruto and Sakura were around, it was true, but she'd sent them to string up Christmas lights all over the village purposely to keep them out of her hair.

Of the four Jonin she'd sent out to find this year's Christmas tree—which she had seen standing in the great hall and looking very impressive— she'd already reassigned Kakashi, Kurenai, and Asuma. Only Gai was left, but she needed him to handle the holiday preparations. She was way too busy with all this paperwork to pay attention to the details, and Gai was more than willing to take the job. Granted, he _was_ a little obsessive with his demands that every little thing be done the traditional way, but at least he got things done.

There was always Gai's energetic student, Rock Lee, but she'd heard he was way too hungover to even get out of bed. Let the poor boy rest, if only for a few days.

The only pictures left were a few of the rookies', and most of them were extremely busy helping out their families at work and home during this crazy time of year.

And so, it turned out she had no one to go out on missions. Was it just her, or was that stack of bills looming larger and larger? Why did the holidays have to be so damn expensive? Life would be so much easier if everyone just gave peace and love like they were supposed to.

The sound of the door banging open shocked Tsunade out of her reverie. Shizune backed into the room bearing a large tray.

"I brought you lunch," she said brightly. "Unless you're not working up as much of an appetite as I thought," she accused upon seeing her boss's dilated pupils and lazy posture.

"No, no!" Tsunade fussed about at her desk. "I'm working very hard." She held out a bunch of the newly signed forms.

Putting the tray down, Shizune took the papers from the Hokage and flipped through them. Why was Tsunade's signature different on every page? This was a new one. Oh well, one couldn't expect her to sign them _and_ read them, right?

Glancing over the rest of Tsunade's desk, she eyed the two exceptionally large stacks. "I'm glad that you got to these so quickly, Lady Hokage, but perhaps you should get started on those bills," she suggested.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea,"

"Oh? They're not going to pay themselves off, you know. And if you don't get started now, they may be here for ten months instead of five," the brunette scolded gently.

Tsunade blanched. Ten months? "I really don't think I should."

Rolling her eyes, Shizune picked up the top few and skimmed over them quickly. She gulped. "You know what? You're right, you really shouldn't. At least eat your lunch first."

* * *

A/N: I think we can all symptathize with Tsunade given the state of our own economy at the moment, don't you? On another note, thanks so much to the five people who have reviewed so far (gosh that sounded pathetic)! I really appreciate it. Also, thanks to all my chibi shy shadow readers who have been reading but not reviewing. I know you're out there! It's okay, really. You can come and review, I don't bite! Just click that big button down there...


	6. Facing my Family

A/N: I changed this verse from 'facing my in-laws' to 'facing my family,' hope you guys don't mind. I had to change a few other verses too, but we'll get to that. This chapter isn't too funny, it's more...reflective. I find Hinata too sweet to poke fun at anyone and too shy to speak her mind. But as always, enjoy!

Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own anything.

Chapter 6: Facing my Family

_The sixth thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me  
Facing my family  
Five months of bills!  
Oh, I hate those Christmas cards!  
Hangovers  
Rigging up these lights!  
And finding a Christmas tree_

Every year the Hyuugas held a large Christmas dinner for the whole clan, branch family included. It was the worst part about Christmas. She had to endure the critical gaze of not only her immediate, but also her extended family. She had gotten used to the disappointment that registered in their silver eyes every time they looked at her, but it still hurt.

And so, Hinata stood frozen outside the Hyuuga estate, one hand on the door, trying to gather up enough courage to enter. It was getting dark, she would be late if she didn't go in soon, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. The cold wind blew her dark hair and nipped at her nose, racking her slight body with shivers. But as much as she wanted to go inside to bask in the warmth of her family, she couldn't. That warmth wasn't meant for her.

Although she was always the shy, quiet girl on the outside, her fiery spirit yearned to break free. But she was always careful to control it. Every time a small piece threatened to escape she suppressed it, imprisoning it away in the depths of her soul. But occasionally, a part of her conscience she couldn't lock away would manifest itself in her thoughts, just as it was now. It demanded why she had to attend this stupid party anyway. Because her father would disinherit her if she did. Well, she was the heir to the clan, so why couldn't _she_ just disown _them_? It would save her a lot of trouble, that's for sure. Hinata blushed at the thought. That was a ridiculous notion! Would her conscience just quiet down, please?

But it had a point. Life really would be easier if she didn't have to deal with her family. Her father, Hiashi, was always breathing down her neck, willing her to be something more than she was. Her sister, Hanabi, could be such a brat. The girl was a better ninja than she would ever be, Hinata would give her that, but that didn't give her a right to entertain this new superiority complex she had. Hanabi went out of her way to be rude to her older sister. She interrupted Hinata during the rare times she had the courage to give her own opinion, she spied on Hinata's training and reported all her failures to their father, and worst of all, she constantly parroted Hiashi's frustration at her sister's poor abilities. And just in case those two failed to hurt her enough, Hinata could always count on the genius Hyuuga, Neji, to give her self-esteem a final crushing blow.

Oh yes, there were times when she wished she had the guts to talk back to her father, or to beat the crap out of her sister, or even to stand up to her cousin. But Hinata was too sweet for that, every time such a thought popped into her head she'd view it with horror.

As it turned out, the only people who were truly there to support her were her teammates. Kiba and Shino were like brothers to her; they always had her back and were there for her no matter what. Then there was Kurenai-sensei, her loving, capable teacher who gave her the encouragement her true family didn't. And of course, there was Naruto. She sighed. Naruto, that so very talented and energetic boy who could simultaneously unnerve her and inspire her to new heights with one glance of his bright blue eyes—when he even noticed her, that is. Most of the time his attention was occupied by his pink-haired teammate, and she envied Sakura because of it. That girl didn't know how lucky she was.

A loud crash from inside the house made her jump. Looked like the craziness had already started. Her friends never did believe the wild stories she told them about the yearly dinner. Hyuugas weren't party animals, they told her. They were all notoriously silent and stoic. Hell, they looked like fish out of water when they did anything so out of the ordinary as laugh! Yeah, right.

How about that time when her great-uncle had gotten so drunk that he stood up on the table and performed the Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms technique in front of the _entire_ clan? Did her friends believe _that_? No, of course not. Okay, what about two years ago when one of her distant cousins had dressed the Christmas goose—literally. Did they believe _that_? Nope. How about the burping contest? The "Byakugan wave"? No, but nice try, Hinata. Well, fine. Let them believe what they wanted, but all those things _had_ happened, and she had been a mortified bystander throughout them all. With all these antics to deal with and the constant bickering between the main and branch families, it was no wonder she hated the dinner so much. She probably had more of the same to expect this year.

She dropped her hand to her side; it was numb from being held up so long in the air. There was no way she'd be able to face her family this year, not with her terrible mission record, training failures, and the embarrassment that always colored her cheeks at these events. Slowly, she turned around and started walking down the street. Just then, she heard a familiar, loud voice calling her name.

"Hinata!"

She whipped around. "N-Naruto?" But nobody was there. Out of habit, she nervously began to play with her hands.

"Hinata, where are you going?"

Wasn't it bad enough that she dreamed about the boy every day? Did her mind really feel the need to take on his voice? Whatever, she might as well play along. At least she wouldn't have to hide the truth from a fake Naruto. "I-I'm leaving, Naruto. I c-can't face my f-family, not this year."

"Why not, Hinata? There's nothing to be afraid of," the invisible Naruto called back.

"B-Because I'm such a failure. I don't want to have to see that look in their eyes, n-not again," she admitted softly.

"You're not a failure, Hinata, and neither am I!"

"Oh I know you're not, Naruto! I believe in you." Her silver eyes glistened with sincerity.

"People just call us that because they can't see our true abilities hidden inside. But we'll show them someday! I'm going to be the sixth Hokage and you're going to be the leader of your clan! Don't let them underestimate you, go in there and show them what you're made of. " Spoken like the true Naruto.

"But, Naruto—"

"No 'buts' about it, Hinata. You can do this."

"But they're _crazy_, Naruto," she blurted out before she could stop herself. "My sister told me this year she and her friend are going to _light the ham on fire_!" She was impressed—she hadn't stuttered once in that last sentence. If only talking to the _real_ Naruto was this easy.

The voice laughed. "Is that all? Don't worry about it! Just relax and remember to _have fun_," he chastised her."

"I can't," she murmured. "I don't have your strength."

"Sure, you do. You carry the will of fire, the same as every other shinobi. _I believe in you_." Naruto's voice floated away on a gentle breeze.

"The will of fire…?" Her face hardened with fierce determination. Yes, she did have it. She could barely feel it lying dormant in her chest, but it was there, glowing with a life of its own. She would show her family she wasn't weak, that she could bear the dinner just as well as any of the others. With her friends behind her and her will to support her, she would endure this dinner with grace.

With an uncharacteristic burst of confidence she walked back up to the entrance, wrenched the door open, and strode into the unknown.

* * *

A/N: I think Hinata has a lot more power in her if she would just dig a little deeper. Perhaps I'll delve a little deeper into her character when I begin my next Naruto story (which I'm already planning out, by the way). Please, please review!


	7. Charities

A/N: Sorry this chapter is a little late. I wanted to get it up earlier, but I had a Christmas party to attend. It wasn't as eventful as Hinata's was though I'll bet. =P Okay, enjoy chapter 7!

Disclaimer: I don't own the song or Naruto. I should also probably mention this time that Ino's views here may or may not reflect my own. Don't hold it against me if you believe differently than she does.

Chapter 7: Charities

_The seventh thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me  
The Salvation Army  
Facing my family  
Five months of bills!  
Sending Christmas cards  
Oh, geez!  
We're tryin' to rig up these lights!  
And finding a Christmas tree_

"Would you like to donate to our cause, miss? All the money we collect is going to help poor children in the Land of Waves."

Ino ignored the man talking to her and stalked brusquely by him. She couldn't believe they were asking her to give _more_ money. Hadn't she just donated a few dollars the other day? Not to mention the money she and her family had given to various other organizations. And what the hell—_the Land of Waves_? If she was donating her money, shouldn't it go to help the poor kids of Konoha first?

In her mind, she rattled off a list of charities she'd donated to already this season. There was the Orphaned Children's Aid Group, the Rehabilitation Facility, the International Health Charity, and so many more! Couldn't they leave her with just a little bit of her own money? It wasn't that she didn't feel for the orphaned kids and the sick people of the world, she did, but she couldn't help thinking that she deserved to spend her own money the way _she_ wanted to. She couldn't remember the last time she'd been on a shopping spree with her friends—when she wasn't training, she was out on missions or helping out at Yamanaka flower shop. She sighed. Christmas was tough.

She knew for a fact that less than half of what she donated truly made it to the destination. The rest was siphoned off by greedy corporate heads or used to pay someone's salary. The charities' advocates always said the collections went one hundred percent to charity, but she knew that was a lie. People would say anything to get a hold of her money. And, being the skinny, blonde, confident girl she was, she was an easy target for people who assumed she came from money. Well, she had a news flash for them— she didn't! Her family worked just as hard as everybody else. Her father was a talented shinobi in the intelligence corps and her mother ran the flower shop, even she was starting to contribute to the family with the money she earned from missions. They needed all the available cash they could get at this time of year: there were parties to host, gifts to buy, and plenty of bills to pay.

That was another problem. With all those bills pay off and every cent of her allowance going towards her friends' Christmas gifts, how was she supposed to come up with extra money to give away? Her occasional shopping sprees always left her bank wiped clean— she needed to save all the cash she could. Every bill that fell from her hand into one of those red metal buckets hurt, especially when the volunteer Santa Claus gave her a scathing look at her meager contribution. Sometimes, he would even come over and ring the bell in her ear to emphasize his disappointment. But what was she supposed to do? She didn't have anything more to give! People always said it was the thought that counted, not the size of the contribution, but she was starting to doubt whether anyone believed that anymore.

She passed an elf in the street. He waggled his ears at her and asked if she would like to donate to the Young Elves Association. Ino gave him an incredulous look, the Young _what_? This was getting ridiculous! She wouldn't mind it so much if the people would just keep quiet to themselves and let potential donators come up to _them_, instead of wandering around the city ringing obnoxious bells and hawking their charity like it was a commodity. But naturally, they wouldn't.

And money wasn't the only thing that these guys were after. Every day, people came into her family's flower shop and begged them for some free bouquets. For a party, for decoration, for a friend—it didn't matter. In they would walk, politely expecting the Yamanakas to hand them a bunch of flowers. It was Christmas, where was the family's holiday spirit? Ino didn't get it. How come people didn't understand that her family had to make money too? Christmas was a time of giving, yes, but not of one's livelihood. She and her family came first, _then_ the little boys and girls in the Land of Waves.

"Hello there, miss. I can see that you're busy, but would you please make a contribution to our cause?" A smiling lady in an expensive fur coat stepped in front of her to ask.

"No, thanks," Ino growled before sidestepping around the woman.

"It's important not to forget the less fortunate this holiday season." The lady frowned at her and blocked her path, making no effort to hide her displeasure.

"I have no more money," Ino fairly shouted. "They sucked me bone dry back on Blossom Ave. Go fight them for it." She practically pushed the woman out of the way before continuing on her walk.

It made her sick. They could ask her for money, yet they hadn't contributed a dime themselves. She knew expensive clothing when she saw it, and that lady's jacket was most definitely up there in the price range. She was grateful the woman was donating her time to help out, but she didn't have force her agenda on others, or actually obstruct people in the street. That's right, obstruct. The lady hadn't just casually stopped Ino, she had actually positioned her body so it was impossible for anyone to get around her without barreling right through!

A homeless man sitting on a bench whistled at her as she walked by. There were broken bottles scattered at his feet and cigarette butts all over the sidewalk. She shuddered. Luckily, Konoha didn't contain many like him— most of the people living here were hard-working and respectable— but occasionally wanderers would pass through the village from time to time, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake. It was disgusting. Half of all the charities she'd seen advertised attempted to help people like the man she'd just passed, but all they did was throw money at them. And what did many of the recipients do with their cash? Buy some more drinks and a pack of cigarettes. They lived off of other people's hard earned money, making no attempt to fix their own lives. Sometimes she just felt like knocking some sense into them and screaming at them to get a job.

Of course, she realized that not all the charities or homeless people were like that. Every so often one would come across an organization truly dedicated to its cause, or destitute people who really were just having some rough times. She was all for helping those people, but it was so hard to tell who the deserving people really were these days.

But looking around her, she couldn't help but think that all of Konohagakure's inhabitants were deserving this year. Look at all the work they'd put in to make this Christmas special! Even Sakura, her eternal rival, and Naruto, that loud knucklehead, had done their part. The Christmas card she'd gotten from Shikamaru just said it all.

She remembered seeing Hinata yesterday. The silver-eyed girl was making her own contribution to charity. They had gotten to talking—well, Ino had done most of the talking. Hinata was too shy and quiet to add much. But the Hyuuga girl had told her about the Christmas dinner she was expected to attend with her family. Of course, Ino didn't believe any of the wild stories Hinata had told her about the Hyuuga clan's behind closed doors, but even if they _were_ true, they didn't have anything on the Yamanakas. Put dozens of loud, talkative, blonde relatives in the same room and one can describe the situation with only one word: chaos.

But Ino felt for Hinata. Her self-esteem was through the floor and she was naturally self-conscious as it was, she didn't need a large room full of family to exacerbate that. Underneath the clan's prowess and arrogance, she had noticed the way they treated their heir—nobody deserved that. Poor Hinata.

Ino was momentarily distracted from her thoughts as she passed through the village's busiest square. Street vendors and shopkeepers hawked their wares and customers crowded the area. This square was Konoha's tourist trap. Enticing window displays and colorful signs took up every inch of room available, luring unsuspecting customers into their respective stores. The square was home to buyers and sellers, as well as the ever present charity workers. The place was fairly congested with them! Everywhere she turned someone held their hand out for a small donation—but she had nothing more to give.

She'd just about had it with these people! Charities, donations, contributions, organizations—she was sick of hearing about them all. Would they please just leave her alone? If she heard one more person ask her for money she was going to explode!

Pushing her way through the throngs of last minute Christmas shoppers was no easy task. It was sort of like being in the midst of a herd of confused deer—or better yet, a crowd of hungry Chojis. They were going every which way, and there was nothing she could do to stop herself from being swept away with them.

Suddenly, a little pocket of space opened up. She rushed for it. But when she got there, she saw someone else standing there as well. The man tapped his red metal bucket.

"Could you spare some cash to make a donation to our worthy cause? We're collecting money to hand out free Christmas trees in the Waterfall village."

Baby blue eyes turned on him with a frigid glare. He was joking, right? Whipping her purse off her shoulder, Ino opened it and held it upside down.

"Do you see?! There is nothing there! Now leave me alone, God damn it!"

Turning on his heal, the man scampered away from the oncoming storm. Ino just glared after him, daring him to come back.

If any more charities came hunting her, she knew how to handle them.

* * *

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed! And also to my chibi shy shadow readers who have been following the story faithfully. As always, it would make me very happy if you left me a line or two. See you tomorrow!


	8. Kids

A/N: Guess what? It's snowing! There are already about 6 inches on the ground and it's still going strong (or, at least it was when I finished writing this chapter)! I love it now, but I suppose I'll hate it tomorrow when I have to shovel it. =P

Disclaimer: The first thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me is that I don't own the song or Naruto.

Chapter 8: Kids

_The eighth thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me  
I WANNA SHURIKEN FOR CHRISTMAS!!!  
Charities  
And whataya mean "YOUR family"?!?  
Five months of bills!  
Ach, making out these Christmas cards  
Sensei, get me some sake, huh?  
What, we have no extension cords?!?  
And finding a Christmas tree_

Grubby little hands reached up to pull on Kiba's fake beard for what seemed like the hundredth time that day. Swatting them away roughly, he pushed the kid off his lap and sent him running off to find his parents. Why couldn't the adults keep their children on leashes?

"Ho, ho, ho," he said glumly. "Who's next in line for Santa?"

A chubby blonde boy with an obnoxious attitude jumped up into his lap and began recounting how good he'd been that year and rattling off a list of gifts he wanted. Kiba zoned the kid's voice out—he was getting good at that by now.

He had been cheerful and full of holiday spirit when Tsunade had called him and Shino into her office to give them a special Christmas-themed mission. He good spirits had quickly melted into misery when she told them what their mission was: playing Santa and his helper for all of Konoha's little children. Smiling, she had held up a Santa Claus suit— complete with a snow white beard, a pillow to stuff under the jacket, and some face paint to give a jolly color to the wearer's cheeks—and an elf costume that included two pointed wax ears, large shoes with curled toes, and bells to accessorize with. The Fifth had even found a pair of reindeer antlers and a red clown nose in her closet for Akamaru. Kiba didn't even want to know why she had the outfits hidden there in the first place.

He had tried pleading with her, but to no avail. His doom had been sealed when he'd answered the Hokage's summons. Apparently, the village was trying to save some money by not hiring a professional Santa—as if there really was such a job—so they'd better be convincing.

He and Shino drew straws—he got the short one. It was with a reluctance that Kiba put on the Santa costume, allowing Shizune to paint red circles on his cheeks to cover up his clan markings. But when he saw Shino, he couldn't help but wonder if perhaps the Santa outfit was a better pick after all. The other boy was dressed in a green vest and matching blue and green stockings. The toes of his bright blue shoes curled up nearly to his ankles, and each one had bells attached to the end that jingled with every step he took. His pointed, oversized ears made him look even more comical. Kiba snickered. Shino refused to take his sunglasses off and grabbed a spare Santa hat to pull over his head, trying to hide both his ears and his identity as much as he could. Of the three of them, Akamaru head the least to wear, but that didn't mean he didn't hate it just as much. Kiba had to halfheartedly scold him a few times before he would leave his false red nose alone and quit trying to shake the antlers off his head.

The Fifth had tied more bells around Shino's wrists before booting the three of them out the door, unsuccessfully trying to cover up her amusement at their appearances. Followed by crowds of kids, they had made their way to the designated shopping center and sat down at the prearranged area where they were to see the kids. Before Kiba had settled comfortably in his chair, a bubbly little girl had popped into his lap. Shino stood a few feet away with Rudolph the red-nosed dog, trying to keep the children at bay.

Even now, after hours of listening to loud little brats shouting in his ear, the line of waiting children seemed to have no end. If anything, it was even _longer_ than before. He looked mournfully over at Shino, who was busy miserably answering questions about life at the North Pole.

Another tug on his beard brought his attention back to the kid in his lap. "I wanna shuriken for Christmas!" The kid bawled.

Kiba held a hand to his ear—he was sure his eardrum at been broken that time. "Of course, of course," he said as he tried to compose his features into a pleasant smile—a difficult task, to be sure. "Just remember to be a good little boy." He quickly booted the child off his lap before he could make his thousandth gift request.

No sooner was the kid back on his own feet when a little girl took his place. Kiba tuned her voice out, choosing instead to listen in on Shino's current conversation.

"No, elves do not live on snow cones," he replied exasperatedly to a little redhead girl. "Hey, please don't squeeze Rudolph's nose!" Shino scolded a chubby kid whom he recognized as the boy Kiba had just had in his lap.

"I don't think he's really Rudolph!" Chubby shouted at Shino. "Rudolph doesn't growl!"

Shino gently nudged Akamaru with his foot, willing him to be quiet. The dog was having a rough time. "Even Rudolph will growl if someone's pulling his tale like that," he said as he pried a squinty-eyed girl's hands loose.

The girl went over to join the overweight blonde. "Maybe you're not really an elf either, Mr.!" She said obnoxiously.

"No, no," Shino struggled to get out the words. "I am an elf. A very happy, jolly elf." His face contorted into a crooked smile. Just saying those words had been so difficult! There was no way this mission was only a D-rank.

"Yeah, well I don't believe you," the boy shot back at him. "Everyone knows elves can do magic—so do some," he commanded. The crowd of kids around him cheered at his words.

Shino sighed and grumbled to himself. This day ranked pretty high on his worst-days-of-all-time list, second only to the time his cousin had accidentally squashed his favorite beetle. Summoning up a little chakra, he performed a simple substitution jutsu, switching his body with one of the wrapped presents behind him.

"Whoa, that was so cool!" Squinty-eyes called to him. "You really _are_ an elf!"

Shino nodded glumly. He was mortified. He never thought the day would come when he was purposely telling a crowd of little kids that he was a magical elf. What was the world coming to? At least his little display had satisfied the kids—for now.

Suddenly, Chubby started up calls of "Santa, I want some candy!" The chant was picked up by the sea of children, until the room was fairly quaking on its foundation. Kiba didn't blame it, he was quaking too. The crowd began to surge forward towards the shinobi and Kiba looked meaningfully over at his teammate. Shino nodded once. Walking over to a table behind him, he picked up a bag of candy and started hurling handfuls of it as far as he could into the mass of kids. They saved this method of distraction for especially trying moments, or when the demand for sweets got dangerously high.

The kids went scrambling for the candy, lessening the numbers near Shino, Kiba, and Akamaru drastically. But it wasn't long before Squinty-eyes appeared at Kiba's elbow and bawled in his ear.

"Give me somethin'!" She screamed.

Kiba was nearly knocked out of his seat by the force of the shout. His ears were ringing nonstop and his head felt like someone had just smacked it with a frying pan. Shino threw a lollypop at the girl, missing her head by inches. She dove after it, roughly shoving a toddler out of the way as she did so.

Akamaru ran up to Kiba and licked his face, trying to capture his master's focus. But it was pretty hard for Kiba to focus on anything at the moment, for there was two of everything! Two Akamarus sat in his lap, two Shinos stood beside him, and thousands of kids were fighting over candy before him. Squnity-eyes' scream had definitely addled his brain.

Just then, two little toddlers—or, he supposed it was really only one little toddler—tugged at his sleeve. "Dad, I gotta go ta bathroom," he said.

"I'm not your dad, kid." Kiba stated in a dazed voice.

"Dad, I gotta go ta bathroom!" The little boy shouted. "I _really_ gotta go!"

Renewed spasms of pain shot through Kiba's head, nearly unbalancing him. Akamaru growled menacingly at the toddler. Nobody talked to his master like that! Once again, Shino had to rush to his teammate's rescue. Grabbing the child by his hand, he tugged him along to the restrooms. This was the last straw. If he had to _help_ the kid go to the bathroom, he was out of here.

When they reached the men's room, Shino fairly threw the boy inside. "Go," he growled.

Obediently, the child scrambled into one of the stalls. It was a good five minutes before he reappeared, complete with unbuttoned pants and toilet paper stuck to his shoe. He walked happily over to where Shino was standing—only to find himself being tossed back into the bathroom.

"Wash your hands," Shino ordered.

"Okay," the boy squealed. The sound of running water and soap squelching around floated out of the open door. Occasionally there were a few loud thuds—the slippery bar of soap landing on the floor, Shino assumed. At last the kid came out again. His hands were dripping, but at least he'd found it prudent to button his pants.

"I don't think you're a very jolly elf, Mr." the kid complained. "Santa should fire you!" He stomped on Shino's foot and ran off before the older boy could grab him again, his mischievous laughter ringing out in the hall.

The ninja raced after him, trying not to entertain the murderous thoughts that were running through his mind. This was quickly shaping up to be the worst Christmas ever.

He caught up to the boy quickly and half dragged him back to the Santa Claus room, not caring if the kid's dad saw them or not. But what he saw when he arrived horrified him. Kiba was buried under a mountain of children, their legs and arms flailing around as they all struggled to get at Santa. Shino couldn't even see his teammate underneath the writhing mass of kids. As he stood there in shock, the toddler slipped through his grasp and rushed gleefully to take part in the chaos.

What was he going to do? Kiba was suffocating under a mound of children! And where was Akamaru? He whipped his head around to find the source of the vicious growl and screams he heard in the background. The dog was hanging onto Squinty-eyes' heel, shaking it about as she struggled to free herself and return to smothering Santa.

Kiba resurfaced for air then, a frightened gleam in his eye. He feared for his life in this mass of insane children. He couldn't use any jutsu on them, they were just kids! But he was slowly suffocating under their profuse demands and more tangible weight. He caught sight of Shino standing agape in the doorway. He mustered up a shout before being pulled back under. "Shino!"

Kiba's cry shocked Shino out of his awed stupor and into action. Racing over to Akamaru, he pried the dog's jaws loose from Squinty-eyes' heel and pushed the girl to the side. Bracing himself, he pushed his way through the wall of kids separating him from his friend. Reaching his hand out, he grabbed what felt like Kiba's arm and tried to fight his way back out. No good. That was it—the last straw! Shino had had it with these crying kids, stupid costumes, and this pathetic mission. To hell with it all. Gathering up his strength, he burst out from underneath the pile of kids, pulling a distraught Kiba with him.

The flailing mound of children collapsed. A few were tossed up in the air by the force of the shinobi's escape. Kiba and Shino deftly caught the undeserving kids before they splattered back to earth. Other children started throwing things in the air, screaming, and crying for their parents.

"Waaaaaaah! Waaaaaaaah!"

A ball whizzed by Akamaru's head and hit the giant, inflatable Santa behind him, knocking it into the wall. The Santa caught on a nail and a loud ripping noise was heard by the anxious ninja below. A large gust of air started streaming out of the figure as it started to deflate, blowing kids every which way. The small Christmas tree in the corner fell into the chandelier that was already swinging precariously on its rope before crashing to the ground on top of a table of gifts.

Santa, Rudolph, and his elf looked around at each other before simultaneously bolting for the door.

* * *

A/N: Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed! I'm so pleased with the positive response I've been getting to this story- there have been so many hits! It makes me really happy to see that. As always, please take some time to review!


	9. Finding Training Spaces

A/N: Ah, sorry this chapter is late! I had Christmas shopping to do and the my other fic to work on and-- oh, what? You don't wanna here my excuses? *picks up giant snowball* You wanna piece of me? Do ya?

Disclaimer: Nope, nothing has changed.

Chapter 9: Finding Training Spaces

_The ninth thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me  
Finding training spaces  
SANTA, I WANT SOME CANDY!!!  
Donations!  
Facing my family  
Five months of bills!  
Writing out those Christmas cards  
Hangovers!  
Now why the hell are they blinking?!?!  
And finding a Christmas tree_

Neji came to a halt. Damn. Yet another training spot was being used. What was this, the fifth one he had looked at now? All his favorite spots were occupied, and what made it worse was that hardly any of them were being used for actual training! In the first he'd seen a band of Christmas carolers practicing. The clearing by the frozen over river had turned into a spectator stand for the hockey game that was going on. In others, he had seen small Christmas trees being put up and snowball fights taking place—like in the field he was looking at now. He ducked quickly out of the way as a snowball came flying towards him.

How was he ever supposed to get some decent training in with all these kids around? There wasn't a peaceful, quiet place to be found for miles in any direction! Turning around, he began to make his way back into the trees when—_smack_. A snowball hit him in the back of his head. Neji spun around and glared at the little brat who was grinning impishly back at him.

Gathering up some snow, Neji threw it back at the kid, hitting him square in the face. Obviously the boy was just an Academy student if he couldn't even block that. He brushed the tiny flakes from his hair as the kid tried to wipe the freezing snow from his face. The boy picked up another handful of snow, molded it into the proper shape, and began tossing it up in the air and catching it in his hand.

So began their stare off. Ice blue faced off with iridescent pearl, but there was no topping a Hyuuga's penetrating gaze. The boy looked away and with remarkable speed hurled his snowball at Neji. But the shinobi deftly caught it in his hand and crushed it between his strong fingers. This kid was starting to annoy him. But he wouldn't be goaded into a senseless snow war. He was a Hyuuga—cool, calm, and collected.

He let the snow in his hand fall to the ground and threw one last glare over his shoulder before jumping back up into the trees. He couldn't let this kid's pathetic antics distract him from his real goal: to find an available training spot.

He hopped from branch to branch, dropping to the ground every once in a while as he neared a training area. As with the others, they were all full. It was too bad he couldn't go over to Tenten's house and train with her there, but she was out doing some shopping. According to her, Christmas gifts and supplies took precedence over her teammate's needs. What about Lee? No, he was probably still reeling from the Harunos' Christmas party a few days back. Better leave him alone.

Neji briefly considered seeking out his sensei for a good sparring match, but then dismissed the idea. The last thing he needed right now was an overly enthusiastic man in a green jump suit explaining the joys of Christmas to him. Gai probably wouldn't even train with him anyway—he'd go join in that "youthful snowball fight" the kids were having four fields back.

This was ridiculous. There were so many training spots in the village, but not _one_ was open for practice. Did nobody think it wise to continue their training over the holidays? Tenten had tried to explain to him that this was vacation, that it was two free weeks in which he could relax and not worry about training or missions. But he didn't agree. What was the point of being a shinobi if one was not always ready for combat? Chopping down trees, decorating houses, and baking gingerbread was not part of a ninja's job. It was their destiny—_his_ destiny—to serve their country at all times.

He sighed. Nobody understood destiny and fate like he did. It was his fate to have been born into the branch family. A genius trapped among lesser clan members. He laughed mirthlessly. Not one Hyuuga had mastered the Byakugan as he had, as he would continue to do, but still they could not accept him. He was cursed by fate to be born into the wrong house, and now he paid the price by bearing the seal on his forehead.

He had seen the main family's private training grounds—they were amazingly large and encompassed nearly every type of terrain. They were perfect, putting these public areas to shame. But he wasn't allowed to train there, none of the branch family was. It angered him to no end. He would make much better use out of it than the Hyuuga heiress, Hinata. That girl couldn't even talk without stuttering, let alone train with her teammates. She was weak, pathetic—everything he wasn't. But it was her fate to have been born into everything, while she herself had nothing. Just as it was his to have the skill, but be cursed with limitations.

At the family dinner three nights ago, he had been welcomed just as the others were, but underneath his hospitable façade Hyuuga Hiashi had been cold and strained towards all members of the branch house. Of course, there were the usual revelries to endure: drunken relatives, flying food, and a burning ham—courtesy of Hanabi and her friend—but there were still always the same tension between main and branch families. Lady Hinata had been surprisingly talkative and warm towards everyone, compared to her usual shy self, but he attributed that to the Christmas spirit that had seemed to alight on everyone except him.

It was always the same, it always would be. Once couldn't change one's destiny. So he would be trapped, a bird in its cage for his entire life. Of course, there was always the hope that he could peck at his master through the bars, but it was a poor hope indeed.

He turned away from his bitter thoughts, focusing instead on his search for a training space. He'd just passed one, but it had been turned into a sledding hill. There was another coming up, maybe—nope. A few kids had turned this one into a maze of underground tunnels and igloos. Try sparring on _that_.

Finally, he came to a stop beside one of the lesser frequented areas. There were no loud shouts or splats coming from behind the trees— that was good. Hardly daring to hope, he peered between the branches. Safe! But wait, there was someone else here already. Oh well, they would just have to share the damn spot unless they wanted him to juuken them into the ground.

He stepped out into the clearing. It only took a moment for him to recognize the raven-haired head and the fan shaped crest: Sasuke Uchiha. The boy turned to glare at Neji, his obsidian eyes were perhaps just as deep and daunting as the Hyuuga's. But Neji stared right back, not phased. They sized each other up, each waiting for the other to speak first.

From what he knew about the Uchiha, Sasuke was a child prodigy, just like him. He had been the most talented student of his year at the Academy and had progressed much since then. And, he possessed an undying hatred for his family—or what was left of it—just as Neji did for the main house. Sharingan, the Uchiha clan's kekkei genkai, was ranked with the Byakugan among the great eye jutsu. A worthy opponent.

Silently, Neji positioned himself into an attack stance. He smirked and activated his Byakugan. The Uchiha's black orbs flickered blood red as he activated his kekkei genkai in turn. Without a word, Sasuke grabbed a kunai from his pouch and came at Neji in answer to his challenge.

The ensuing battle was medicine to Neji's strained nerves. He vented all his anger, all his frustration on the Uchiha. And when the two finally paused to rest, having not once broken their self-imposed silence, Neji actually smiled. He had found a training space, and a sparring partner to boot. Perhaps Christmas wasn't so bad after all.

* * *

A/N: For those of you who are wondering why the timeline is so screwed up, don't worry, I am well aware. Tsunade is the Hokage, but the chuunin exams haven't yet taken place, hence Sasuke is still here and Neji still has problems with Hinata. It's all wrong, I know, but I can do things like that because I'm the author! Muhahahaha *cough*. Er, yeah, I need to work on my evil laugh. Thank you to everyone who reviewed and all my chibi shy shadow readers. *pretends not so see them hiding in the bushes* Nope, I don't see a thing!


	10. Kunai not Included

A/N: Um, surprisingly, I don't have anything to say. Read on!

Disclaimer: Standard disclaimer applies.

Chapter 10: "Kunai not Included"

_The tenth thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me  
"Kunai not Included"  
No training spaces  
GIVE ME SOMETHIN'!!!  
Get a job, ya bum!  
Facing my family!  
Five months of bills!  
Yo-ho, sending Christmas cards  
Oh, geez, look at this!  
One light goes out, they ALL go out_!!!  
_And finding a Christmas tree_

_Snap_. The leather strap in Tenten's weapons holster broke in two.

"Aw, crap," she grumbled aloud. Now she had to go out and buy a new holster in addition to all the Christmas shopping she had yet to do. "Oh well, I suppose I was going to have to go out and buy some more supplies sooner or later."

She glanced over at the woefully small stash of weapons on her desk. Yep, she definitely needed some more shuriken, a few scrolls, and maybe a couple of kunai. Tossing the broken holster into the garbage with her usual remarkable accuracy, she grabbed her jacket out of the closet and made her way out of the house.

She strolled down the street dreamily, Christmas was such a wonderful time of year. Everything looked so quaint and perfect, plus two weeks off of missions to boot! She couldn't understand why Neji insisted on having such a bleak outlook on the holiday season. Lee certainly was taking the celebrating seriously, though perhaps dealing with a hangover every morning wasn't ideal. Sighing happily, Tenten came to a stop in front of the first weapons store she passed.

She'd never patronized this store before, but the display case was certainly enticing. The windows exhibited a beautiful pair of twin blades. The kunoichi's eyes sparkled as she took in their aerodynamic blades, sharp points, and fitted handles. Oh what she would give to own something like that! To the left of the swords was a small, red velvet box containing shuriken. Although they were not as ostentatious, these weapons were no less special to Tenten's knowing eyes. The shuriken were shaped like stars with five points, as opposed to the traditional four. There weren't many available with that special design. They were so beautiful, she could hardly tear herself away from the display.

But finally, she proceeded inside the store—well, more like she was pushed inside by a brisk old lady who had come out to see why some girl was gawking outside her window. Within, the store was even more breathtaking. Every inch of the wall was covered with weapons, the ancient ones right next to the novel. Tenten's eyes filled with hearts. She was in love! She longed to have them all, to feel the familiar weight of cold steal settle in the palm of her hand.

Suddenly, the woman's voice brought her back to reality. "Is there something I can help you with, miss?" Her tone was less than friendly and she followed the kunoichi's movements with wary eyes. Obviously she didn't trust the love struck girl among all these expensive weapons.

Tenten nodded her head. "I need a new leg holster, please."

The old woman went behind a counter for a moment. She returned with her arms laden with leg holsters of different sizes, colors, and fashions. Tenten had never seen such variety—who knew there were actually _fashions_ for holsters?

Selecting a plain black holster similar to her old one, she said, "I'd like the kunai that come with it too, please."

The woman cocked her head and smirked. "I'm sorry, the kunai aren't included."

"What? But at nearly every store a pair of kunai comes with the holster!"

"This is a fine establishment, miss. We are much too prestigious to give things away for _free_. Shall I take back the holster?" She reached out her arm to snatch it out of Tenten's grasp.

"No, that's alright," Tenten growled. "I'll just take the holster." She'd be damned if she'd let this woman chase her out of this store. She had just as much right to shop here as everyone else—kunai, or no kunai!

The ringing of the cash register echoed throughout the store. Tenten grudgingly paid the exorbitant price for the holster—there was no backing out now. But that would be the last time she shopped there! As she left the store, she gave one last wistful look at the beautiful shuriken in their red box, just tempting her from the window.

That stupid old lady! "Kunai not included" her ass. Every shop she'd ever been in had thrown in a free pair of kunai with the purchase of a leg holster. What, was the woman's store too good for that? Tenten gave an unladylike snort.

She glanced down at her list to see what other supplies she needed. Hmm, a bunch of shuriken and some more weapons scrolls. The bitter wind numbed her skin and the weapons mistress was all too eager to escape into the warmth of another store, regardless of the fact that she'd never been to this one either.

Bells above the door jingled as she pushed it open, and a cheerful man came out to greet her. "Hello, what can I do for you today?"

Tenten smiled at him. Now if only the old woman had been this pleasant! "I need some shuriken. One of those small cases, if you have them."

The man motioned for her to stay where she was and disappeared into the depths of the shop. A moment later, he reappeared with a small wooden box piled high with shuriken. "Is this what you need?"

The brunette clapped her hands. "Perfect!" She followed the man up to the counter and prepared to pay when she remembered something. "Um, can I get the kunai that come with this?"

The man looked at her questioningly. "Kunai? If you want to by kunai we have cases of those as well."

Tenten twitched. "Er, no," she began slowly. "I mean the kunai that come _with_ the shuriken."

"I'm sorry," the man apologized. "Kunai are not included."

He _had_ to be kidding. Kunai don't come with the holster? Fine. But who ever heard of complementary kunai not coming with a case of shuriken? This was unbelievable! She'd been to nearly every weapons store in Konoha, and all—well, except for the last one—threw in a kunai or two with a case of shuriken. Did she say she liked this man better than that old woman? Well, she lied.

"Fine," she growled. Slapping the money down on the counter, Tenten grabbed her purchase and burst back out into the cold. She grumbled to herself all the way down the street. People practically leaped out of her way to avoid those smoldering chocolate eyes.

She finally arrived in front of yet another store. But unlike the others, this was one she actually frequented. She _knew_ they gave complementary kunai here. Grunting in reply to the owner's familiar greeting, she made her way down one of the aisles to the scroll section.

Baskets and boxes of different sized and different types of scrolls lined the aisle walls, each with a different label. Above them all was hanging a paper sign with the words "Seal Your Own Scroll" painted on it in big black letters. Taking a deep breath, she relaxed, releasing some of the tension from her body. This was her favorite part of the store. She could take a blank scroll, seal a few weapons of her choosing inside with a few simple hand signs, and have it forever. But then she did a mental double take, had that fine print always been there? Stretching up on her tip toes and craning her neck, she read the tiny words aloud.

"Kunai not included."

She blinked. And then exploded. "What?! How can this be? I've been coming here for years—_years_, I tell you—and kunai have _always_ been included! What, is there some new fad going around or something?"

The store owner came over to her to see what all the commotion was about. "Tenten, are you—"

He was interrupted as the weapons mistress grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and practically lifted him off the ground.

"What _is_ this?! Can't I come in here and buy some damn scrolls and get my damn complementary kunai? Is that so much to ask? Do you still throw in kunai with the purchase of a leg holster or case of shuriken, or did you add fine print there too?"

The man's eyes were bulging and he tried to gasp some words out, but Tenten continued as if she hadn't heard.

"What, are you getting all buddy-buddy with your neighbors down the street? That snooty old lady and Mr. Deceivingly Pleasant, hmm? I expect it from their damn shops, but not from yours! Can't a girl get her damn promised kunai _anywhere_ anymore?"

Her gaze shifted over the man's shoulder to see several other customers peering around the aisled dividers at her. She placed the store owner back on his feet and dusted off his shirt for appearance's sake.

"This'll be the last time I shop _here_," she hissed before stalking out.

For a weapons mistress, she was eliminating supply stores with incredible rapidity. But hey, who wanted to patronize a store that went back on its former policies? The shop she had just been in had _always_ given out complementary kunai—why the sudden change? It didn't matter. She'd find a better store in the village, there had to be one!

Walking down the street, another display case caught her eye. She glanced inside at the colorful scrolls laid out behind the window. This was it, this was the one! She just knew it.

"Get your sealing scrolls here!" The sign read. "Kunai not included."

* * *

A/N: So, even though the anime doesn't really delve into Tenten's character, she struck me as a kind of Sakura-strong girl. Without the lovey-dove Sasuke syndrome, that is. I hope you enjoyed!


	11. Stale Dinner Specials

A/N: I apologize for this chapter's shortness, it's been a hectic day. Only two more days left until Christmas!

Disclaimer: *shakes can of pennies* Nope, still not enough to buy the song _or_ Naruto

Chapter 11: Stale Dinner Specials

_The eleventh thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me  
Stale dinner specials  
"Kunai not included"  
No training spaces  
DAD, I GOTTA GO TA BATHROOM!  
Charities!He's so strict...he scares me!  
Five months of bills!  
Oh, I don't even KNOW half these people!  
Oh, who's got the toilet paper, huh?  
Get a flashlight...I blew a fuse!  
And finding a Christmas tree_

"Damn, another no go," Choji muttered under his breath. He dropped his hand from the menu tacked to the outside of the restaurant's wall.

He was looking for something good. Something _very_ good. But everywhere he went, the menus always said the same things. Forget that, he'd tried noodle bars, barbeque places, and fancy eateries—at all the restaurants he'd been in the selection was the same: Christmas goose, Christmas turkey, Christmas ham. He was tired of eating the same damn meals!

Ever since December had begun, all the restaurants in the village had limited their selections to seasonal dishes, and Choji was getting sick and tired of it. One could only eat so much ham. People argued that Christmas only came around once a year, they everyone should celebrate the season while it lasted, but he could argue that Christmas only came on _one day_ a year. _One_ day, not a whole damn month! These restaurants should refrain from offering Christmas specials until Christmas Eve. It was kind of annoying to be plagued by a Christmas feast on the first of December, and now that it was the twenty-third—well, let's just say Choji was plenty more than annoyed. By the time his own family's Christmas dinner came around he wouldn't want to touch the stuff!

It was the same every year. The chefs always came up with the identical tired old dishes without falter. He wanted to sit down and be able to order a bowl of noodles without having it flavored with small pieces of Christmas ham. He wanted to go into a casual diner and not have to stare at the holly and mistletoe hanging from every available space on the wall. He wanted to be able to order a bowl of spaghetti without being brought a special Christmas meat to go with it. He just wanted Christmas to end! Honestly, the faster it was over, the faster he could get back to his regular eating schedule.

He turned away from the restaurant and began to head down the street to check out a new diner. His stomach growled in protest as he left the aroma of warm, freshly cooked food behind.

As was expected, this new eatery was more of the same. Sure, they had thrown in a lasagna as a side dish, but that didn't make it any better. Didn't anyone besides him think that these dinners were getting old? He longed for something new, something fresh out of the chef's hat. Choji grinned at his pathetic joke. Get it? Chef's hat, thinking hat? No, Choji, not funny.

He sighed wearily and leaned against the wall. He patted his stomach tenderly in a futile attempt to sooth its grumblings, but of course, it refused to stop.

Whenever Ino heard his stomach grumbling like that, she'd make a nasty comment about how he was always eating and how he was such a pig; Shikamaru would just take it all in stride. Choji smiled to himself as he thought about his best friend. He and Shikamaru had learned to deal with their obnoxious teammate and not pay any attention to her criticisms. Shikamaru thought she was just jealous he _could_ eat, for her diet didn't allow her more than, say, 1500 calories a day max. Besides, anyone thicker than a broom handle was fat in her eyes.

But it still bothered Choji how people only thought of him as an overweight glutton. It hurt when they underestimated him because of his food addiction, and it enraged him when they called him fat. He was happy where he was, as he was. Couldn't they just accept that? Even Asuma-sensei had remarked on how much Choji ate compared to how little he trained. But extra weight was necessary for his clan's special technique, it wasn't like he could just lay off the food and still retain his skill as a ninja.

He'd had problems with people making fun of his weight ever since he was a little kid. But then Shikamaru had befriended him, understood him, accepted him—they had remained close ever since. The lazy brunette had become like a brother to him. And even Ino, no matter how much she denied it, was his friend and believed in him. Though she was constantly remarking on his greedy desires, she acknowledged his strength and his potential to be a formidable opponent in battle. And that was all he could ever ask of her or of Shikamaru. He had found true friendship on his team.

Leaving the shadows of the diner, Choji headed into a more crowded part of the village, hoping to find a menu that did _not_ consist of the same old dinner specials. He visited restaurant after restaurant after restaurant, and still nothing.

As he turned towards one doorway a smartly dressed waiter came out to inquire if he could help the young gentleman.

"I don't know, can you?" Choji held out his hand. "May I see the menu, please?"

The waiter handed him a plastic encased slip of paper. "Here you are, sir."

Choji looked it over quickly. His indifferent expression rapidly changed to one of extreme annoyance. He rounded on the waiter. "Can I please just get one damn bowl of pasta? Or some spicy shrimp? Anything that isn't Christmas food," he ranted at the unsuspecting man. "Is that so much to ask? All of these dishes are old! Old, old, old," he reiterated to get his point across. "Every year it's the same thing! Christmas ham, Christmas this, Christmas that, how about _regular _ham or _regular_ this or _regular_ that? Or maybe you could just push it ahead a holiday and make it _New Year's_ ham! At least that would give it the semblance of novelty!"

Throwing the menu back in the waiter's face, Choji stormed away.

"Damn, another no go."

* * *

A/N: Ugh, I'm going to have to eat a Christmas ham and a Christmas turkey in a few days too. Not to mention the sides of lasagna, sweet potatoes, and stuffing. It feels like Thanksgiving all over again! Well, there's only one more verse of the song to go. See you then!

And **thank you** to everyone who's reviewed and/or read the story so far, especially **beyondthecrystalsea** for your encouragement!


	12. Singing Christmas Carols

A/N: It's raining so much here! I hope it doesn't wash all the snow away, I want a white Christmas. I think the last time I had one was in third grade, so sad. Anyway, enjoy the last verse of the song!

Disclaimer: Darn! Outbid on eBay again!

Chapter 12: Singing Christmas Carols

_The twelfth thing at Christmas that's such a pain to me  
Singing Christmas carols  
Stale dinner specials  
"Kunai not included"  
No training?!?  
WAAAAAAAAAAH! WAAAAAAAAAAH!  
Charities!  
Gotta eat at dinner!  
Five months of bills!  
I'm not sendin' them this year, that's it!  
Shut up, you!  
FINE! YOU'RE SO SMART, YOU RIG UP THE LIGHTS!!!  
And finding a Christmas tree  
_

"Come on, Sasuke, put a little more enthusiasm into it," the conductor pleaded.

The raven-haired shinobi glared at the little man and shook the bells violently by way of response. He shouldn't even have to be doing this. It was Christmas Eve for God's sake!

"Better, Sasuke," the conductor grunted. "Thank you." He shifted his gaze from the ninja to encompass the whole choir before him. "Alright, let's take it from the top again, shall we?" He tapped out a beat and cued the singers to begin.

The lyrics of Jingle Bell Rock rang out across the practice hall, threatening to deafen the ears of all inside. Sasuke grimaced and halfheartedly shook his bells to time. There was no way he was actually going to join in the singing. Hell would freeze over before that happened! A genius Uchiha singing Christmas carols? Ha.

Leaning his back against the wall, Sasuke glowered at all the other singers around him. It was no wonder they gave him a wide birth, for he was working on an especially vicious version of the famed Uchiha glare. He couldn't believe his life had come to this. When Tsunade had called him into her office a few days ago for a mission, joining the choir was the last thing he had expected. But here he was, shaking bells for a bunch of loud mouthed performers who butchered every Christmas carol they sung. It would help him "loosen up" the Fifth had said. He needed a break, to enjoy the holiday season. He was on strict orders, no more training, only helping out with the celebration. He had glared at her, nearly fought with her, and come as close to an Uchiha ever would to begging with her, but to no avail.

After leaving her office, he had wandered aimlessly around the streets trying to avoid Sakura and Naruto, which was fairly easy considering how loud both of them were. For the first few days he had been successful in avoiding choir practice, he'd even managed to get in a sparring match with Neji Hyuuga, but his good luck hadn't lasted long. Maito Gai had found him lounging outside a dango shop and ordered him over to the choir hall to "excite his youthful spirit with passionate song." Kakashi-sensei had been a witness to Gai's sentencing, but of course, he hadn't helped his student out much, he was too busy blushing and giggling as he read his perverted novel.

"Sasuke, why don't you sing with us, hmm?" The conductor's voice broke into his reverie. "Just because you're ringing the bells, doesn't mean you can't lend your voice to ours as well." He glanced disapprovingly in the ninja's direction.

Sasuke glared at him again, and the conductor quickly looked away. His wild, white hair frizzed up even more under the shinobi's harsh gaze, as if even each individual strand wanted to escape being in the same room as the raven-haired boy. Sasuke's mood was black, his anger was tangible and tension crackled in the air. That white-haired old man had _better_ be afraid.

"Right then. Let's try Silent Night, everyone. Feel free to join in, Sasuke," the conductor added quietly. He cued the choir and the sweet tones of the carol floated up in the air.

Sasuke kept his lips pressed tightly shut in a thin line. He'd be damned if he joined in. This was such a waste of his time. If there were no real missions available, he should at least be out training. How was he ever supposed to get stronger if they kept him locked up in a room full of singing divas? He highly doubted he could defeat his brother with song.

His mood grew even darker as thoughts of his brother crossed his mind. Itachi had taken everything away from him. Everyone he cared for, everything he knew—it was all destroyed by the hands of the one whom he had loved most. He had looked up to his brother, idolized him, adored him, and for what? To have that image torn down before his eyes, to have the knowledge that he had worshiped a monster all these years thrust in his face? To be reminded how weak he had been, how he hadn't been able to do anything about it? Sasuke slammed his clenched fist into the wall behind him, causing the choir to cut short their song and stare in fear at the raven-haired boy in the shadows.

Sasuke was too wrapped up in his thoughts to notice the music had stopped. It was only when the conductor sharply inquired why the shinobi had put a dent in his wall that he looked up at the scared yet concerned faces around him.

"Whatever," he grunted. That was as close to an apology as he would get.

The conductor rolled his eyes and muttered something about "anger management," but Sasuke let it slide. He wasn't in the mood to fling a kunai at the man's face or use his Grand Fireball jutsu. Not only would he probably burn the practice hall down, but Tsunade would have his head if added any other bills to her already huge pile. Besides, there was his mission record to think about. He didn't know if doing something so extreme would qualify as a failed mission, but he couldn't afford to tarnish his perfect reputation.

The music soon started up again, and for a while he remained focused on shaking the bells to time, but eventually his mind began to slip away from reality. He wondered what it would be like to enjoy Christmas like all the other shinobi in Konoha. His family sitting down to a large dinner, holding hands around the Christmas tree, and relatives entertaining everyone with their antics—he remembered something like that from long ago. He must have been about six when his last true family Christmas took place. But that was all gone now, nothing more than memories fading into a better forgotten past. This year, as with all the past years since his family's deaths, he would spend Christmas alone in the empty Uchiha district, reliving his nightmares while the rest of Konoha celebrated merrily with their relatives. Perhaps he would drop in on the Christmas party in the Great Hall this evening though, if only to observe the holiday revelry and linger on what could have been if Itachi hadn't—. He cut off that train of thought before he made another dent in the wall.

Damn these Christmas carolers. Would they just shut up? The songs coming out of their mouths sounded more like noise than music. They wouldn't get better no matter how much they practiced—he knew failures when he saw them. Would any sane person even _want_ to be kept up till the odd hours of the night by bands of carolers strolling around the streets belting out their songs? He desperately hoped Tsunade wouldn't make him stay out all night with them. It would be cold, windy, just plain irritating. He had better things to be doing—well, not really, but wasn't _anything_ better than this? If the singers didn't drive him crazy, the bells he was being forced to shake would. To someone who much preferred silence over noise, their incessant jangling was hell. Sasuke brooded on the pains of caroling for the remainder of choir practice, only snapping back to attention when the singing finally came to an end.

The conductor had barely dismissed the choir before he was out the door and walking down the street. The sun was just dipping below the horizon and everything was silent except for the crunch of snow beneath his feet. Most people were inside their houses, nice and warm while putting some last minute touches on the Christmas gifts and decorations. Sasuke shoved his hands deep into his pockets and lowered his head against the wind. At least it was going to be a white Christmas, if anything.

As he neared the center of the village, he began to see other people around. Most were men rushing about to buy last minute forgotten gifts for their wives, but there were others too. Of course, there were charity Santas requesting donations as well, and in a rare moment of kindness, Sasuke dropped some money into box marked "Orphaned Children's Aid Group." He merely grunted in reply to the gratitude the charity's agents proffered and continued on his way.

Down a side street, a small band of Christmas carolers was already beginning the night's work. They were all dressed as elves and were cheering a small audience with Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Sasuke rolled his eyes and resisted the urge to throw a snowball at the group. Hopefully that wouldn't be _him_ stuck in an elf suit come nighttime. Neither Tsunade nor the conductor had mentioned anything about costumes, but he was still extremely wary. He'd heard what had happened to Kiba, Shino, and Akamaru, and the last thing he wanted was to relive their experience.

He turned away and resumed his walk. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

A/N: Poor Sasuke, no family to go home to! He and Naruto should just get over their rivalry and have Christmas together. And just for the record, Itachi and Sasuke are probably my facorite characters, their personalities and motives for everything are so deep. It pains me to see Sasuke hates his brother so. *sniff* Ok, well I'll get the last chapter up tonight (hopefully). If you want to leave me a Christmas present and make me happy, please leave a review. But I know most of you are really busy right now and probably won't even read these last few chapters until after Christmas, so it's okay if you don't have time. I won't hate you, I promise. =)

As always, **thank you** to everyone who has reviewed, I really appreciate it. And a big hug to all my chibi shy shadow readers out there! *waves*


	13. The Moment We've Been Waiting For

A/N: This is the final installment of my story. I hope everyone has enjoyed reading it. Let me take a moment to say **thank you** again for everyone who has reviewed and to all my chibi shy shadow readers! MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone and a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Disclaimer: The song "The Twelve Pains of Christmas" and Naruto do not belong to me.

Chapter 13: The Moment We've Been Waiting For

The sound of bells rang out across the village, inviting everyone to celebrate Christmas Eve in the Great Hall. The Hokage's building was decked out accordingly, strands of lights and piles of snow giving it a picturesque look. But nothing could compare the magnificence of the Hall where the giant Christmas tree rose majestically over all the merry-makers.

Already people were clustered together talking, drinking, or just enjoying the moment. Kakashi, Asuma, Kurenai, and Gai stood in a corner, the champagne glasses in their hands glistened as the light reflected off the golden liquid within. Gai was in his usual jubilant mood, but had taken the enthusiasm up yet another notch as he surveyed the room. He attributed the success of this moment to all his careful planning and efforts. And of course, the beautiful tree towering above them all was his crowning glory.

Kakashi was attempting to break away from Gai's conversation so he could lounge in one of the comfortable leather sofas and read his book. No party could make him forget his perverted Icha Icha series. Kurenai and Asuma were covertly holding hands while trying to keep their attention on the excited man before them. The slightest blush dusted Kurenai's cheeks, and it was _extremely_ difficult for her to focus on Gai's speech when she was all too aware of Asuma's thumb tracing circles on the back of her hand.

"Do you not feel the passion of youth?" Gai inquired loudly.

Kurenai's blush deepened. Had he noticed? She had no doubt Kakashi would have if he wasn't so wrapped up in trying to escape their group. "Sure, Gai." She tried to make her voice indifferent and normal, there would be no end to it if Gai discovered hers and Asuma's intertwined hands.

"The Hall is filled with youthful spirit tonight, Gai," Asuma added cheekily before raising his champagne glass to his lips.

Gai clapped the man on the back, causing him to spew out his mouthful of drink. "It certainly is, Asuma!" Obviously he hadn't noticed the sarcasm dripping from his comrade's every word.

"Right." Kakashi shifted his gaze from Asuma back to Gai. "Listen, I think I'm going to go get another glass of champagne, okay? Okay. Bye." The masked shinobi turned to walk away when Gai's energetic hand alighted on his shoulder.

"The alcohol must be going to your head, Kakashi. Your glass is still full." He gave his rival a knowing wink.

Kakshi looked at his glass and back to Gai. Quickly, he turned its contents out on the floor. "No, it's not," he said calmly, giving no hint that he realized what he had just done. "Well, I'll go get some more then!" Taking advantage of Gai's blank look and momentary lapse of exuberance, he began to stride towards the refreshment table.

"Wait, my eternal rival! I shall come with you!" Kakashi must be implying he wanted to have a drinking contest with him! Yes, that had to be it. Why else would he be after so much drink? Ah, another competition and another chance for him to one up the white-haired nin. This was Christmas at its best! He quickly ran to catch up with Kakashi.

Kurnai and Asuma chuckled quietly as their comrade's shoulders visibly slumped when he realized Konoha's Mighty Green Beast was following him. He couldn't even find escape from their rivalry on Christmas Eve.

"Poor Kakashi," Kurenai sympathized.

"Better him than us," Asuma replied. Grinning, he pulled her over to the dance floor and swung her close to him. "Shall we?"

They were slow dancing to Silent Night, and although the choir behind them was doing a remarkably bad job of singing the song, at least the musicians weren't too bad. Except for whoever was manning the bells, _he _certainly wasn't performing to tempo.

But Sasuke could care less if his bells were jangling to time or not. At least he was shaking them at all, and that was the most they were going to get from him tonight. Tsunade had forced him to perform in the Great Hall, something which he would never forgive her for. Sure, he only had to remain there for a couple of songs and at least they weren't in elf suits, but it was mortifying enough. Naruto kept grinning at him and laughing—oh, how he wanted to wipe that goofy look off the blonde's face! Sakura, on the other hand, was alternating between mooning up at him with heart filled eyes and violently punching Naruto.

"Doesn't Sasuke look so dumb up there? Hey, Kiba, did you get a look at him?" Naruto was milking Sasuke's embarrassment as much as he could, but it earned him yet another smack from his pink-haired teammate. "Ne, ne, Sakura, why did you do that?"

"You idiot! Stop making fun of Sasuke. He's more of a man than you'll ever be, standing up with the choir like that." Not even the fact that Sasuke had been _forced_ to join the band of carolers could dampen Sakura's ardor.

"Yeah, Naruto," Ino chimed in. "Sasuke is so cool!" She turned her baby blue eyes in his direction and sighed wistfully.

"Even when he's not around he's annoying," Naruto muttered as he massaged the growing lump on his head.

"That's what you get for getting between Sasuke and his fan club, Naruto," Shikamaru called from where he was lounging in an arm chair.

Ino rounded on her lazy teammate. "Hey, Shikamaru! I'm not his _fan club_. One day he'll see that we're meant to be."

"Ha, you wish, Ino-pig!" Sakura snorted. "_I'm_ going to be with Sasuke!"

"Not likely. Why would he want to hang around a girl with such a big forehead?"

Emerald met sky blue as the two girls electrified each other with killer glares. Shikamaru just sighed and muttered something about "troublesome women."

"Yosh, Sakura, why bother about Sasuke when you can enjoy my youthful company?" Lee had come up to join the group. To everyone's satisfaction, he looked sober enough and was carrying a glass of apple juice instead of champagne. His stoic teammate followed close on his heels. Under Neji's careful supervision it was unlikely Lee would get any alcohol tonight.

Sakura twitched as she took in Lee's thick eyebrows, dazzling smile, and usual green jump suit. She made every effort to dodge the air kisses he was blowing at her.

"Now, now, Sakura," Ino scoffed. "Don't chase after Sasuke when there's someone who wants you now. You never know when another man's going to make the horrible mistake of falling for you."

"Ino-pig!"

"Forehead girl!"

Neji attempted to drone out Sakura's and Ino's ceaseless bickering. "Does it ever end?"

"Never," Choji replied solemnly. Shikamaru shook his head in agreement.

Naruto watched the blonde and rosette fight in consternation. Why was everyone so obsessed with Sasuke? What did his teammate have that he didn't? "Ne, Hinata," he turned towards the quiet girl behind him. "You're the only sensible one here! Let's go." He grabbed her hand and started to walk towards the refreshment table.

The Hyuuga heiress was too shocked to reply besides blushing up to her eyes. Naruto had noticed her! "Um, N-Naruto? Where are we going," she asked.

"We're getting some food to bring back to the others. There's no popcorn around, so I suppose we'll just have to eat Christmas ham as we watch Sakura and Ino fight. It's bound to get interesting. Maybe Sakura will even realize Sasuke isn't worth fighting over." Naruto didn't believe a word of his last sentence, but when had he ever stopped hoping?

"O-Okay," Hinata replied.

They returned to the group ten minutes later bearing two trays piled high with delicious food. Choji made a pained face and declined to partake in any of it, but the others were more than happy to chow down as they watched the cat fight unfold before them.

Neji couldn't help but thank God Tenten wasn't at all like the two girls before him. She was a dedicated, sensible kunoichi who loved weapons instead of men. A good choice. When had a kunai ever let her down? He glanced over at the brunette as she helped herself to some more lasagna. Although he would never admit it, he couldn't wait to see her face light up when she saw the gift he'd gotten her. He'd seen her gazing at the red velvet box of five-pointed shuriken in a weapons store downtown and taken the liberty of buying them for her as a Christmas gift. She deserved them.

Tenten looked up when she felt his pearlescent eyes on her. Was he smiling? It was an ever so slight lift of the corner of his mouth, but it was there. Hey, since when did the Hyuuga genius ever smile? Smirk, yes, she'd seen him do that many times, but smile? No way.

From behind his dark glasses, Shino observed the entire exchange. He had remained quiet throughout the whole Sakura-Ino episode, preferring sitting quietly in the shadows to openly taking sides. If there was anything he'd learned from his bug companions, it was to never underestimate the power of the female. In many species, it was even deadlier than the male. There was no way he was going to cross either Sakura or Ino.

Just then, Gai's voice blared out from the microphone positioned on the stage at the head of the room. "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen!" He flashed them all a dazzling smile. "This is the moment we have been waiting for: Christmas Eve. I know we have all spent so much time preparing for this holiday, but it has been truly joyful."

"More like 'painful'," Asuma called out from the audience.

"Well, yes, there have been a few tough times—" Gai said uncertainly.

"A few?" Kakashi repeated incredulously. "Finding that Christmas tree took all damn day!"

Well as long as everyone was complaining…. "And those Christmas lights that Naruto and I had to rig up all around the village? Forget about it! That was the _least_ joyful thing I've ever done!"

"You can say that again," Naruto agreed.

"Hangovers are by far the worst," Lee interjected. "I have been in the bathroom so much, sometimes I fear that my youthful spirit has all but burned out!"

Shikamaru cupped a hand around his mouth and gave his own input. "Sending all those Christmas cards was the most troublesome."

"I have enough bills to last five months at least!" Tsunade boomed out from the back. "You should just see the heap on my desk."

Shizune nodded. "Trust me, you have no idea."

Gai was beginning to get worried. He pulled at the tight neckline of his jumpsuit. "Er, well then, if everyone's quite finished…."

"I had to face my family at the annual Hyuuga banquet," Hinata piped up. It was a good thing her father wasn't in the room or she would never have had the guts to give her opinion.

"And those stupid bell-ringing Santas and charity workers stopping you at every corner, don't even get me started!" Ino hugged her purse tightly to her for emphasis.

"'Santa, give me this!' 'Santa, give me that!' 'I want candy!'" Kiba cringed at the memories his words invoked and Akamaru buried his head farther in his master's jacket.

"Ugh, kids," Shino agreed.

"No training spaces! How is it that a village as large as ours has not one training area available for practice?"

"'Kunai not included,'" Tenten hollered up at Gai. "Stores are taking away their complementary kunai! Where's the Christmas spirit?"

"Stale dinner specials." Choji motioned at all the food around him. "I can't even escape it here!" He held up a bag of half eaten potato chips and waggled it around. "See? I'm living off my spare supplies!"

Sasuke, who had just gotten off choir duty and come down to join his comrades, decided it was time he contribute his two cents. "Singing Christmas carols," he said with a pointed glare at the Hokage.

Gai gulped. "Now, now, it may not have been easy, but look where we are! There pains of Christmas are many, but are they not worth it? We are surrounded by the people we love in the village we would die to protect. It is a perfect Christmas—with all the joys of youth to go with it!" Tears of happiness cascaded down his face

"He just _had_ to ruin a good speech, now didn't he," Tenten whispered to Neji.

The Hyuuga merely nodded as he tried not to look at Lee. Gai's most youthful student had tears of his own spilling down his face and was gazing up at his sensei with adoring eyes.

"Come, let us all gather round this magnificent tree." Gai hopped down from the stage and strode over to stand before the beautiful evergreen.

The rest of the shinobi followed his example, until eventually everyone was gathered at the base of the majestic tree. Friends stood next to friends, rivals next to rivals, Kakashi even put down his mesmerizing book to treasure the moment.

The tree towered above them to the ceiling, while the lights and ornaments decorating its branches shined over the room and the bright star at the top cast its glistening rays over everyone. The multitude of presents at the bottom tempted every nin, no matter how old. The magic of Christmas wasn't only for the young.

The clock tolled midnight, and the booms echoed across the silent Hall.

"Merry Christmas," Gai whispered.

**_-fin-_**

* * *

A/N: I hope everyone liked this story because I wrote it all just for you guys. I don't think I've ever written an entire story in just ten days, so you had better feel special! =]

I'm glad so many people got to read The Twelve Pains of Christmas, but don't think this is all I have up my sleeve. After I finish my other story, I will be posting a Naruto fic, so keep an eye out for me!

Enjoy your holidays.


End file.
